Sparks and Flames 1: The Philosopher's Stone
by Gumpieke
Summary: Harry is horribly treated while living with his relatives. One day he has to much and he runs away only to be picked up by an old man. Name: Albus Dumbledore. He takes Harry to live with the Weasleys where he meets Ginny. First in a series.
1. Chapter 1: A New Home

DISCLAIMER: Nothing belongs to me except the crazy things these characters get up to. I'm just playing with Rowling's wonderful characters.

AN: This is a first in a series. I plan on writing through seven years of adventures. I hope you all enjoy it. Thanks to etj4eagle for helping me building this story.

If you could all please leave some reviews, that would be very much appreciated! I really love those.

Enjoy!!**  
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Chapter 1: A New Home**

Little Whinging was a peaceful place. The neighbours were all friendly to each other and said good morning and good evening whenever they met in the streets. Even though most of them tended to keep to themselves, life was pleasant in this little part of the world. People lived well around here. They all had nice houses, nice cars and happy children, who loved to go to the little town school, even though most did hate doing their homework.

However, at number four, Privet Drive, one small, skinny boy wasn't happy at all. In fact he was most positively miserable. He was crying softly, curled up in a small ball, his knees pulled tightly to his chest. A small spider was crawling over his arm, but he didn't seem to notice. It was dark in the cupboard he was locked in and he barely had the room to move around in it. A few more months and he would have to sleep while sitting up in his very small bedroom.

He winced when he tried to move himself in a slightly more comfortable position. He was hurting all over his body after the enormous beating his Uncle had treated him to today. He had large bruises on his arms, his back and his face. Whenever he took a deep breath, his chest hurt and he had to keep himself for crying out. His black, always messy hair was coated with blood from where he had hit his head and the round glasses on his nose were broken from when his Uncle's fist had contacted with his face.

It's sad to say that Harry Potter was used to this sort of injuries. His Uncle always punished him this way for everything that went wrong in the house and had done so for as long as Harry could remember. Harry lived with his Uncle, Vernon Dursley, and his Aunt Petunia ever since his parents had died when he was just a baby. They had died in a car crash, his Aunt once told him, and that was when he got the lightning bolt shaped scar on his forehead, but other than that he knew next to nothing about his real parents. He knew better by now than to ask his Uncle or his Aunt about them. From an early age he had found out that the only way to avoid more beatings was not to ask any questions.

So he kept himself silent and hidden away as much as he could. He was still beaten once in a while, especially if something strange happened. And strange things did happen around Harry quite often. And time and time again, Harry was blamed for them, even though he had no idea how they happened. Like this one time; Harry was really hungry and had once again gotten next to nothing to eat from his relatives. All the while his cousin Dudley was stuffing his face. 'Little' Dudley was Vernon and Petunia's only pride and joy, even if he was a fat and horribly rude bully. As usual, Dudley had filled up his plate with everything he could get his hands on. Harry remembered looking jealously at the enormous heap of food on his cousin's plate and wishing he could have that food for himself. The next thing he knew, Dudley's plate was empty and his plate was full. He got a terrible beating for stealing after that and was locked in the cupboard without food for almost a week.

Another time, Harry was asked to clean up Dudley's bedroom when he had gotten sick all over his bed. He was disgusted by the job, but before he could even begin, the sick had disappeared without a trace, which Harry didn't mind at all, mind you, except for the unfortunate detail of the bed disappearing with it. Once again, he got punished, even though he had tried to explain he couldn't even lift the thing, much less take it out of the house. His relatives wouldn't listen however and they just stuffed him in his closet like always.

And then there was today. It was the twenty-third of June and thus it was Dudley's eleventh birthday. As a treat, his Aunt and Uncle had taken the boy to the zoo. Since they had no one to look after Harry and didn't trust him around the house on his own, he had been allowed to go with them. This made him happier than he had been in quite some time since he had never been allowed to go anywhere before. They usually left him with this batty old lady that lived by the road. Mrs. Figg was somewhat nice, but all she ever did was talking about her many cats and Harry usually had a terrible headache by the time he got to go back home.

At the zoo, Harry hung back a little to enjoy his afternoon away from his prison as he had begun to call it. He didn't know why but he started talking a bit to this huge snake, a python, that resided in one of the glass cages there. He didn't tell it anything special, just how he hated living with his relatives and that he hoped that someday someone would come for him. Amazingly enough, the snake seemed to listen to him and lifted his head in attention. Dudley saw the strange movements of the snake and pushed Harry roughly out of the way to get a better view of his own. Harry got real angry at that and suddenly the glass in front of the cage had disappeared. Next thing, the snake slid out of the cage and coiled itself around Dudley trying to squeeze the life out of it.

The face of Harry's fat cousin started turning blue fast. Harry hated his guts, but still didn't think his cousin deserved to die, so he tried to pull the snake of and yelled at it to let go. To his utter astonishment, the snake listened immediately and slithered quickly out of the building.

His relatives of course started accusing him of causing the whole episode and he had gotten his worst beating ever. He was pretty sure one of his ribs was broken, since he had trouble breathing, and the rest of his body was covered in bruises.

Harry realized this could not go on for much longer. Who knows what his Uncle might do next time. But he didn't see any way out. He didn't have any friends to go to since his cousin beat up anyone that got within five feet of him and he had no idea who else to turn to. He was stuck in this awful house and all he could do was try to survive.

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The next week passed very slowly and finally Harry was let out of his closet. His bruises had taken on a faint yellow and his chest kept aching when he breathed. He tried to do everything they told him to, but he was still in much pain and found it difficult to move. Still, he didn't complain, as that would only cause him more trouble.

He was ordered to clean the whole living room that day and quietly set to work. He spent the entire morning vacuuming the thick, ugly pastel rug, dusting all the pictures that stood and hung everywhere in the room – all of Dudley of course – and cleaned the windows. By the time he was done, every part of his body ached in ways he didn't even hold possible before today.

After dinner – another very small portion for him – he had to clean the table. He hardly could lift his arms by then and when he tried to put the dishes in the sink, he dropped the whole bunch on the floor. His Uncle immediately exploded and started yelling. He closed in threateningly on Harry, his face red with anger. Harry knew he couldn't take another beating this close after his previous one and he did something he had never done before. He ran for it!

He ducked under Vernon's fist and sprinted to the front door. He yanked it open and ran outside into the rain. Harry ran for several blocks, before the adrenaline wore off and all the pain streamed back into his body. He was hurting all over and couldn't take another step. Wet and cold, he dragged himself towards a small shack that was erected next to a small house at the edge of town. He stumbled in, pulled his legs close to himself and shivered himself to sleep.

When he woke up the next morning, it was still early. His clothes were damp, but he wasn't cold anymore, since the day had started with nice weather and a very agreeable temperature increase. He stood up and tested his sore muscles. Every move he made still hurt, but the pain had lessened somewhat since yesterday and it wasn't as though he wasn't used to it. His stomach grumbled loudly to protest its emptiness. He could go back to his relatives and hope for some food, but he really didn't want to. He probably wouldn't get any anyway. Instead he settled for an empty stomach for now until he could figure out how to survive out here with no money and no place to live.

Quietly, he got out of the small shack and started walking alongside the road, his feet taking him slowly further away from his relatives. He left the town behind and turned into a small dirt road that led into the forest. Suddenly he heard a small pop behind him. He turned around and saw a large man standing there. His first thought was that this was obviously a crazy old person, since his appearance was nothing if not odd. He had long silver coloured hair that hung to his waist and an equally long beard that was tucked in his belt. He was wearing some sort of purple robes that shimmered in the morning sun and were decorated with stars and moons that seemed to move over the fabric. On his head he wore a purple pointed hat. His nose was long and crooked and Harry was sure it had been broken several times already during the man's life. But what Harry noticed most were his eyes.

His eyes were partially hidden behind half-moon spectacles. They were a bright blazing blue and they seemed to twinkle every time they moved. They radiated wisdom, trust, power and a slight hint of mischief. Harry was inclined to trust this man; but the adults in his life had never been kind to him, so he was still apprehensive.

"Good morning, Harry," the old man greeted. Harry was speechless. This man knew who he was. He backed away a little, staring at the man in front of him in shock.

"You are far from home today," he continued pleasantly. His voice was kind and soft. "Why aren't you with your Aunt and Uncle? They must be worried."

Harry stiffened. This man knew his relatives. He would take him back to them. He backed away a bit further and then turned around and started to run again. However, when he rounded a corner he suddenly stood in front of the man again.

"Don't be afraid, Harry. I'm not going to hurt you."

Harry eyed the man suspiciously. "Who are you, sir?" he asked softly. His voice was shaking a bit and he was seriously considering trying to run for it again.

"My name is Albus Dumbledore," the man stated a little proudly. "I am the headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Hogwarts?" Harry asked.

The old man looked surprised for a moment, but then he hid his surprise behind a smile again. "Yes, Hogwarts. It is a school for gifted children such as yourself. But you will know about that later," Dumbledore said. "Please tell me, Harry, why aren't you at home right now? This is no hour to be so far away from your house."

"I don't have a home," Harry answered simply.

"You don't have a home?" Dumbledore asked. "What about your Aunt and Uncle's house? I thought you lived with them."

"How do you know?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"That doesn't matter for now. All that matters is that I do and that you should go back. They will be worried about you."

At this Harry actually laughed, though his laugh was filled with misery and anger. "Them? Worried? I think they're glad I'm not there. Anyway, I'm never going back and you can't make me!"

Dumbledore raised an eyebrow and looked intently at the boy. His eyes opened wide in surprise and horror when he saw the bruises on his face and the dried blood in his hair. The old man forced his face back into a smile. "What happened, Harry? How did you get hurt?"

"It's nothing," Harry mumbled softly, looking away from the piercing look the blue eyes gave him.

"Did your relatives hurt you? Your uncle?" Harry didn't answer, which confirmed the man's suspicions. The twinkle was gone from the man's eyes and he seemed to grow older at the spot. He was silent for a few moments, "Do they hurt you a lot?" he asked softly, kneeling besides the boy. He moved his hand to the boy's shoulder, but Harry flinched when the hand got close and pulled away.

The old man gave a great sigh. "Come on, Harry. Let's sit down for a moment." He walked to the side of the dirt road and sat down on the stem of a fallen tree. Harry hesitated for a moment, but finally moved to sit down next to the man. Somehow, he couldn't help but to trust Dumbledore.

"What do you know about your parents, Harry?" Dumbledore asked suddenly, after another moment of silence.

"My parents?" Harry asked shocked. "Nothing. Aunt Petunia doesn't talk about them. All I know is that they died in a car crash." He sighed deeply and continued in a soft voice laced with sadness. "I don't even know their names."

Dumbledore looked distressed for a moment, but then smiled again as though nothing was wrong. "I knew your parents, Harry. I even knew you when you were just a little baby. Do you want me to tell you about your parents?"

Harry nodded enthusiastically. This strange man knew his parents! Finally he would know something about them. He turned all his attention to the person sitting next to him.

"Your parents went to my school when they were young. Both of them were very good students and wonderful persons. They were magical people and I mean that quite literally," he said with a small smile. "Your mother was a witch and your father a wizard. And you, dear boy, are a wizard too."

Wizard? Witch? This man was making fun of him.

"I am not making fun of you, Harry," Dumbledore said, voicing his exact thoughts. "I am quite serious. They could both do magic. I am a wizard too, just like your father was." When Harry still looked sceptical, Dumbledore spoke again. "Would you like me to prove it?" Harry nodded cautiously. Dumbledore pulled a small wooden stick out of his sleeve. "This is a wand. We use it to focus our magic." He waved it around a few times. Out of thin air a small table appeared, laden with all kinds of food.

"Wow!" Harry said softly.

"Thank you. I believe you are hungry, Harry. Please do eat something," Dumbledore chuckled, pointing at the table.

Harry looked amazed at all the food in front of him. "Is – is it all for me?" he asked. He had never seen so much food at once, especially food that was for him to eat.

"Yes. Please, tuck in."

Harry started eating fast, afraid the food would disappear again before he was full.

"Would you like me to tell your parent's story, while you eat?" Harry nodded, without interrupting his meal. "You look so very much like your father, Harry. James Potter was his name. You're the exact spitting image of him when he first came to my school. Maybe he was a little better fed but that is beside the point. You look just like your father, except for the eyes, though. Your mother, Lily, had the same, beautiful green eyes as you do. They were amazing people, your parents. Both powerful in magic and kind hearted. They were very good students and became very good friends of mine after they graduated." The man paused for a moment.

"Now, you must know, not all wizards are good. Some time ago, there was a wizard who went bad – very bad, and he started hurting a lot of people. His name was Voldemort and he was as powerful as he was evil. Your parents, good hearted and brave as they were, fought this wizard and did a good job of it for some time. But nine years ago, on Hallowe'en, they were attacked by Voldemort at their house and he killed your parents." A tear escaped Dumbledore's eye at that moment and Harry's appetite was suddenly greatly reduced.

"You were there too that night and Voldemort tried to kill you too. But somehow he failed. The curse that easily killed so many others couldn't kill you and rebounded onto him. He disappeared that very same day and hasn't been seen since."

"He tried to kill me?" Harry asked softly. Instinctively he reached to his forehead and traced his finger over the scar.

"Yes, Harry, he did. The curse he used had killed many powerful witches and wizards, but it only gave you that scar. And because Voldemort disappeared that night, you are famous among the other witches and wizards."

Harry was done eating by now. "You said earlier that I'm a wizard too. Are – are you sure? I mean, I can't do any magic."

"No? Have you ever done anything strange when you're angry or scared?" the old wizard asked chuckling. Harry looked thoughtful for a moment and then smiled. "I thought so. Now, I really love to talk around here but I'm afraid have a lot of work to do, being headmaster and all. We need to find you some place to stay for the moment, though, unless you want to go back to your Aunt and Uncle?"

Harry shook his head forcefully. "I understand and I will make sure you don't have to go back again. Now, where do I take you? Ah, I know. I'm sure Mrs. Weasley will take care of you for the time being." Dumbledore ducked to take a stick from the ground. "Please hold this, Harry," he said, thrusting the stick in Harry's hands. "_Portus_," he muttered, tapping his wand against the stick. Instantly, Harry felt something pulling behind his navel and he was pulled through a very narrow tunnel.

When Harry got his vision back, he noticed he was standing on a dirt road that cut through a small field. He looked around and saw the strangest thing he had ever seen not too far in front of him. It was a house. The strangest house he had ever seen. From the looks of it, it used to be a pigsty, but all kinds of parts had been added. The building reached four floors upwards, but the placement of the different levels was not perfect. It was crooked and imperfect and Harry thought it should not be standing at all, but then again, it did. Harry realized it was probably held up by magic and he decided he was going to like this magic thing.

A soft pop was heard and then Dumbledore was standing next to him.

"Ah, Harry. Welcome to the Burrow," he smiled, his eyes twinkling again. "This is the home of the Weasleys, one of the nicest wizarding families I have the pleasure to know. I am sure you will be most welcome to stay until we find you a more permanent place. They have lots of children so you won't be bored. I will let Mrs. Weasley make the introductions."

Harry and Dumbledore walked to the house and Dumbledore knocked on the door. A short, plump and kind-faced woman opened the door. She looked friendly and motherly. She was wearing a flower-patterned apron with a wand sticking out of the pocket. What Harry noticed most was the flame red dishevelled hair on top of her head. She smiled when she saw the two persons in front of her.

"Albus!" she exclaimed, a smile on her face. "To what do we owe your visit?"

"Good morning, Molly," greeted Dumbledore. "How are you today?"

"Just perfect this morning, Albus, thank you. And who are you?" She smiled at Harry and he immediately perceived her as a kind person, but he still pulled back a bit.

"I am Harry, Mrs. Weasley," he answered shyly.

"Harry?" A look of recognition came over her face and her eyes flickered to his forehead. "Are you Harry Potter?"

"Yes, I am," he answered softly.

"Young Harry here needs a place to stay for a few days. Could you look after him?" the headmaster asked.

"But of course," she smiled. "You are more than welcome here, Harry. We are just having a spot of breakfast. Do you want to join us, Albus?"

"I would love to, Molly, but I have some business to attend to. I will come back tonight to check up on Harry." He kneeled down next to Harry now. "You are in good hands now, Harry. I will see you tonight, ok?" Harry nodded. "Thank you for doing this, Molly. One more thing. Harry has some bruises. Could you please give him a check over? I will explain what happened tonight. Please don't ask Harry how he got them." The woman nodded. "Thank you, Molly. Until this evening. Good day, Harry."

Dumbledore turned on the spot and disappeared. Mrs. Weasley turned to Harry.

"Why don't we go inside, Harry dear?" she said softly. "The others are in the kitchen, but perhaps we should look at those bruises first, don't you think?" Even though she asked for his opinion, Harry sensed that it was not a request.

"Sure, Mrs. Weasley."

She led him through the door into a living area. It was the strangest place Harry had ever seen. In all aspects, it was the complete opposite to the living room of the Dursleys. It was filled with worn, but comfortable seats and sofas in all shapes and sizes. In awe he looked around. A large fireplace was lined against the wall. On the mantelpiece were a lot of pictures, but they were not like anything Harry had seen before. The figures moved around in their frames and waved from time to time. When he looked closer, he could see lots of different faces, but each and every one of them had flaming red hair.

He looked further. Above one of the sofas, two long needles were knitting what looked like a jumper, but they were moving entirely on their own, clicking and clacking as they went. A large clock adorned the wall, but it did not tell time. The clock had nine hands, and each hand had a picture and a name. They didn't point to numbers, but to words like 'at home', 'at work', 'travelling' and even 'mortal peril'.

"Come here, Harry and sit down. Let me look at those bruises," Mrs. Weasley called out. She reached into a cabinet and pulled out a small jar with a cream coloured paste in it. "Now Harry. Tell me where it hurts. This will remove the bruises in a jiffy."

Embarrassed, he pointed at his face, not because he really wanted the care, but because it was too obvious to hide and adults didn't like to be lied to. She gently took of his glasses and softly and carefully rubbed the paste on the bruise. He flinched when she touched him, but she didn't pull away. The paste smelled like mints and was cold to the touch, but the moment it touched his skin, the pain began to fade.

"There we go. Much better, isn't it?" she asked smiling. Harry nodded and tried to get up again, but he couldn't hide a pained look when he moved. "Harry, you have more bruises, don't you?" she asked softly. "Come on, take of your shirt. Don't be afraid. I'm not going to hurt you." Hesitantly he did as he was asked. Mrs. Weasley gasped when she saw all the purple and blue on his body, but she forced a smile back on her face and gently started rubbing the paste on his torso. Harry pulled away each time she reached out to him, but she gently held him in place while she took care of him.

When she rubbed it onto a particular large bruise on his side, Harry screamed out in pain and wrenched himself away from her grip.

"Oh, my. This rib is broken!" she exclaimed horrified. "Sit still; this will only hurt a second." She pulled out her wand and aimed. "_Episkey_." His side glowed yellow for a moment and then the pain was almost gone. "There, much better, isn't it?" Harry nodded and took a deep breath without feeling pain for the first time in over a week. A small smile formed around his lips.

"Thank you, Mrs. Weasley," he whispered shyly.

"My pleasure, dear boy. Now put your shirt back on," she said. She reached for his glasses, tapped them with her wand and they repaired themselves. She gave them back and gestured for him to get up. "I will introduce you to the rest of the family, at least those who are home for the moment." She led him through a door to the kitchen. At a large table, filled with all kinds of food, five children were eating their breakfast, all of them sporting the same flame red hair. There were four boys, two of which were twins, and one girl, obviously the youngest of the family. They were all talking loudly and laughing and joking with each other.

"Boys! Can I have your attention for a moment? Sorry, honey, and girl too of course," Mrs. Weasley added when the little girl looked indignant at being overlooked. "This is Harry. He is going to be staying with us for a while. Please be nice to him." She looked especially at the twins when she said this. "Harry, these are five of my children. This," pointing at the eldest, "is Percy. The twins are called Fred and George, but no one ever knows which is which. They are too much alike, in every way imaginable. That over there is Ron and my daughter is called Ginny." They all mumbled a 'hi' or a 'good to meet you' and Harry shyly did the same. "Why don't you sit down, Harry?"

He did as told and sat down next to Ginny. He took in the persons around him. Percy was clearly the eldest of the pack. He was tall and thin and looked like he was about fourteen or fifteen years old. The twins were much stockier built. They were shorter, had broad shoulders and they were identical down to the last freckle. Ron was the youngest of the boys, but he was already as tall as the twins. Ginny was a small girl and he estimated her about a year younger then he was. She had the most beautiful chocolate brown eyes he had ever seen and her hair shone brightly when the light caught it. She smiled broadly at him and he found himself smiling back. The first real smile he had since – ever.

The four boys started bombarding him with questions about who he was, where he came from, what he liked and loads of other questions. Harry was overwhelmed and couldn't get a word between it, not that he really felt like talking anyway. Ginny must have felt his discomfort somehow, because suddenly she yelled, "Shut up!" Her brothers looked shocked, but were silent immediately. "He will be here while. You can ask him later." She turned to her mother. "Mum, can I show Harry around?" she asked.

"Sure, honey. Go ahead."

Ginny took Harry's hand and pulled him out of his chair. At first he flinched at the contact, never been touched like that before, but immediately found he kind of liked it. Her hand was soft and warm in his and it felt nice and comforting. She led him out the door and back outside. The sun was shining brightly by now and it was promising to be a nice day. They walked side by side for a while, holding hands and it felt to Harry like the most natural thing to do and the best thing in the world at the same time. She led him to a small wooded area behind the house. A creek was softly flowing through it, the water cackling down little waterfalls.

"I'm going to show you my secret place," she said softly. Her voice was nice and friendly. "But you can't tell anyone, ok?" Harry nodded and found himself smiling again. What was going on? He had never smiled much before but now he didn't seem to be able to stop. She stopped in front of some bushes and pulled some branches to the side. It opened to a rather large open space, surrounded by bushes at all sides. On the ground were two small boxes, presumably to sit on.

"Come on in, Harry," she said jovially. "Welcome to 'Ginny's place'." She gestured for him to sit on one of the boxes and sat down on the other one. "I like it here," she said. "I come here when I need some time alone or when I'm sad or angry. I need that sometimes. Sometimes I can get really worked up when my brothers tease me and then I can get really angry. My mum always says I've got too much passion but my brothers keep saying I've got a wicked temper. Anyway, the sound of the water calms me down. I find it peaceful here. It relaxes me."

She was silent for a moment and reached for Harry's hand again. Harry immediately took hold of it and he smiled again. "Do you have a place like this?" she asked carefully. He tensed up a bit, but she squeezed his hand reassuringly and he was surprised to find himself talking.

"Not really," he answered sadly. "My Aunt and Uncle never let me out of the house except to go to school. They don't really let me do anything."

"Don't you live with your parents?"

"No, they died when I was little and I lived with my relatives ever since," Harry sighed and a tear escaped his eye. "According to Dumbledore, my parents were murdered when I was little by some evil wizard named Voldemort." A shiver went through Ginny when Harry said the name and she squeezed his hand a little harder. Harry ran his other hand through his hair. This action exposed his scar and Ginny gasped in recognition.

"You're Harry Potter!" she said surprised.

"You know me?" he asked flabbergasted.

"Everybody does in the wizarding world. Didn't you know?"

"Dumbledore said something about me being famous, but I guess I didn't realize that he meant that everyone knew me. I only found out about wizards and witches this morning. I never knew there was anything like magic until Dumbledore told me," Harry sighed. "My relatives are not magical and they never told me anything about my parents."

"They weren't very nice to you, were they?"

It wasn't a question.

"I can't remember them ever doing anything nice to me," he responded softly. "I ran away from them yesterday. Dumbledore said he would make sure I didn't have to return. I really hope he wasn't lying."

"If he said he would then he will. He's the headmaster of Hogwarts, a school where you can learn magic," she added for good measure as he knew next to nothing about the wizarding world. "My brothers talk about him all the time. They say he's brilliant and the greatest wizard of our age."

"I hope so. I really don't ever want to go back there," he said forcefully.

"Where will you live then?"

"I have no idea. Dumbledore said I could stay here for a few days until they found a more permanent home."

"Maybe you can come live with us? I'm sure my mum will let you. She always lets my friends stay over. She's used to cooking for a lot of people. I don't know if you noticed, but I have a lot of brothers," she said grinning.

"Yeah, I noticed. Your mum said that wasn't even all of them. How many do you have?" he asked.

"Six older, thoroughly annoying brothers but I love every one of them," she said smiling. "The only ones you haven't met are Charlie, who works in Romania with dragons, and Bill, who is the eldest. He is a curse-breaker for Gringotts and works in Egypt at the moment."

"Do you like it that your family is this big? I mean, I only have this one cousin and all he ever did was beat me up."

"Most of the time, it is incredible. You are never alone and there is always someone around to play with. My brothers are all very nice to me, except when they tease me, that is," she answered, making a face. "I wouldn't trade my family for the world, but it has his downsides too. All those kids are expensive and my mum doesn't always have the money to buy us new stuff. Like this t-shirt," she said plucking at the faded shirt she was wearing. "It used to be Ron's, but he grew out of it and now I have to wear it. I really hate it sometimes, but I can live with it. Since I'm a girl, I do get some new stuff from time to time."

"I always get my cousin's hand-me-downs, but they are always way to large for me. My Aunt always says he's just big boned, but he really is about the size of an elephant. The clothes I get are always too large and most of the time they are even ripped. Now I don't even have those. I didn't really have time to pack when I ran away."

"You don't have to run anymore, Harry. You don't ever have to go back to those people." She squeezed his hand in reassurance. "Now, are you ready to go back to the house? You really could use a shower. You're a nice boy, but at the moment you stink," she teased.

Harry laughed broadly. "Yeah, I guess I do stink. Sorry about that." He got to his feet, without letting go of her hand and pulled her up. Together they walked back to the house in a very comfortable silence.

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After a very long, hot shower – the first time he could ever shower as long as he liked – he put on the clothes that Mrs. Weasley had given him. They were still a bit too large, as they were Ron's, but he didn't swim in them like he did in Dudley's. He went back down and immediately looked for Ginny when he entered the living room. She was playing a game of chess with her brother. At least he thought it was chess but the pieces were moving on their own and whacking each other of the board. He sat down next to her and immediately took her hand in his own. He had never sought contact with anyone before, but he couldn't help but to reach out for her now. It made him feel at ease and safe.

"It's Wizard Chess," explained Ron when he asked about the game. "It is the same as Muggle chess, except the pieces move by themselves. You want to play?"

"Muggle?" Harry asked.

"A person that's not a wizard," Ginny explained.

"I would love to play, but I don't know the rules," Harry said sadly.

"Don't worry, mate," Ron grinned. "Me and Ginny will teach you. Why don't you and Ginny play a few games together against me, so you can learn?"

They spent a very good afternoon together. He immediately liked this boy. He was funny and always making jokes, but when he concentrated on his chess play, nothing could disturb him. His brows would furrow as he thought about his moves and when he did make his move, it was almost always a good one. Ginny claimed that she had never won a game against Ron in her life. The only one who had a chance at winning was her dad, and that was probably only because he had a lot more experience playing.

"So, are you really Harry Potter?" Ron asked after three games. Harry just nodded. "Do – do you really have that scar?" Ron made a lightning bolt movement with his finger.

"Yeah, I do," Harry answered softly. If everyone would ask this, he would soon get tired of it. He lifted his fringe so he could show Ron.

"Wicked," the boy smiled.

"Ron," Ginny said angrily. "He is not some thing to gawk at. That was very rude of you."

Ron's mouth opened and closed a few times before he said, "Sorry, mate. I shouldn't have asked that."

"No worries. I guess I should get used to that if everyone knows who I am."

"Did you really live with Muggles after your parents, you know –" Ron asked hesitantly.

Harry cringed a bit at the question, but he answered anyway. "Yeah, but they were horrible people. I ran away last night. I don't ever want to go back."

"So you're looking for a place to live?" Harry nodded his confirmation. "I really hope my mum let's you live with us. I would like to have a friend around here. The twins are nice, but they always play pranks on me. And Percy is no fun at all. Always studying and talking about his future."

Harry was touched. "I'm your friend?"

"Of course you are," Ron answered like it was the most normal thing in the world. "What else would you be?"

"I've never had a friend before," Harry said quietly.

"Really?" Ron said shocked. "You never had a friend before?" He was quiet for a moment. "Well, you do now," he finally said firmly. "I would love to be your friend." Ron held out his hand grinning and Harry shook it gratefully. He finally had a friend and Dudley wasn't around to bully him. This was the best day in his life.

-------------------

"Good evening, Harry. How was your day?" Albus Dumbledore asked that evening.

"Best day of my life, sir," Harry answered grinning. He was sitting at the table in the kitchen at the Burrow next to Ginny, their hands still linked together. Mr. Weasley had come home an hour ago and he and Mrs. Weasley had a long talk together about something. Now they were all having dinner. The food was amazing and he got to eat as much as he wanted. Mrs. Weasley even persuaded him to take second and even third helpings.

Dumbledore had just stepped out of the fireplace in the kitchen in a whirl of green fire. Harry had jumped three feet high from shock when that happened but he still found that way of travelling brilliant. Travelling by Floo-powder, they called it.

"I hope I can make it even better, Harry," Dumbledore said, his eyes twinkling. "I went to the Ministry today and I had a talk with someone about your guardians. They have treated you horribly and therefore you are not required to return to them." Harry let out a whoop of joy that was shared by Ginny and Ron. "I see you already made some friends here," Dumbledore smiled. "Excellent." He folded his fingers together on the table and looked at Harry. "We still need to find you a family to live with," he said. "We need to appoint some new guardians to you."

Mrs. Weasley spoke next. "Albus, me and Arthur talked about that. We would love to take Harry in with us but we fear we are not strong enough financially, especially when Harry goes to Hogwarts after the summer."

"I had a feeling you would feel this way," he answered smiling. He didn't look surprised at the least. "I can give you some reassurances financially though. Harry's parents set up a trust fund before he was born to pay for his studies when he got old enough to go to Hogwarts. It will be available to him the moment he turns eleven."

"Really?" Mr. Weasley said, running his hand over his head. His hair was just as red as his sons, but it was thinned and he was beginning to bald. His face broke out in a smile. "Well, since we don't have to worry about the money, we would love to adopt Harry. That is, if he would want us to." He looked expectantly at Harry.

"You want to adopt me?" he asked softly, afraid that this would be a dream.

"We would be honoured to have you in our house," Mr. Weasley said seriously. "What about you guys? Do you mind having another brother?"

There were shouts from all of the other Weasleys, varying from a dignified 'welcome to the family' from Percy to a round of applause from the twins, a handshake from Ron and a hug and a kiss on the cheek from Ginny. For some reason his face felt warm after she did that and something made a flip flop in his stomach. It was a pleasant feeling though. He softly squeezed her hand in thanks and he was thrilled to feel the pressure returned.

"Then I would really like to live here," Harry grinned.

---------------

The weather had been terrible the last three weeks. It had been raining practically non stop for days. Harry didn't mind though. He was used to being stuck inside. Except lately it was much more enjoyable than it used to be. Now he had friends. He filled his days playing wizard chess with Ron, chatting with Ginny and reading in the old school books from the twins. He found everything about magic fascinating. He couldn't wait to get his wand but you had to be eleven before you were allowed to own one. Ron already had one but it was not new. It used to belong to his brother, Charlie and it missed some chunks here and there.

Harry and Ginny were still found together at every single moment they could and always holding hands. There was just something about that simple gesture that made him feel secure and at ease. He felt restless when she wasn't near or in the morning when she was still asleep. It was not just him either. The moment she saw him, she would grab his hand and didn't let go until she really had to. He had caught Mrs. Weasley shooting them strange looks from time to time and the twins were always joking about the cute little couple. But Harry and Ginny didn't care. The just laughed it away and kept holding hands anyway. Ron too looked strange at them from time to time, but he seemed to accept their rather strange relationship and just pretended he didn't notice.

Harry was really content in his new home, but it soon became clear he still had a long road to go. He still flinched whenever someone touched him, except when that person was Ginny. He tended to avoid any physical contact that was not necessary. Sometimes, his mood dropped for no particular reason and Harry would retreat in a corner of the house, his legs pulled close to him and staring into nothingness. Ginny always joined him when he did that and held his hand in silence. After a minute or ten of silence, the two of them would begin to talk. Sometimes about light subjects, like Ginny's brothers or Hogwarts or the work Ginny's father did. But more often than not, he would spill his heart to her. He told her about all the horrible things that had happened in his life and she listened to him and comforted him when he needed it. He always felt better afterwards and would keep on smiling for the rest of the day.

Today was the first day in ages that it wasn't raining and the children at the Burrow practically ran outside when they saw the sun shining in. The twins stated solemnly that Ron and Harry were now old enough to take their first steps in the Quidditch universe. Mrs. Weasley had always forbidden Ron and Ginny to ride a broomstick until they had had proper instruction at Hogwarts but today she wasn't at home and the youngsters were taking advantage of their temporary freedom. They walked to the small paddock behind the Burrow. It was a clearing surrounded by high trees where they could fly without the Muggles seeing them.

"Are you ready for your first lesson?" George asked in a loud voice. His brother put the two brooms he was carrying on the ground.

"Stand next to your broom." Fred said.

"Now hold your hand above it," George continued.

"What about me!" Ginny shouted angrily. "Why can't I fly?"

"But, little sister, you are still too young."

"Yes, dear sister. We will teach you next year."

Harry stepped away from the broom he was using and turned to Ginny.

"You can use mine, Ginny," he said seriously.

She smiled at him. "Yeah, I know, but these two gits need to learn that I'm not a little girl anymore. If I want to learn how to fly, they are going to teach me." She turned back to the twins, crossing her arms threateningly. "Isn't that right?"

They cowered under her stare and gave in without any more protests. Ginny smiled in triumph and ran to the broom shed to get another broom. She put the broom next to the others in the grass and stood next to it.

"Now, are you ready?" Fred asked, still looking uncertainly at his sister.

"Stand next to your broom and –," George said.

"– hold your hand above it," Fred finished.

"Say 'up' and the broom will jump to your hand."

The three did as they were told. Harry was surprised when his broom jumped to his hand at the first try. Ginny did well too. Hers jumped up at the second try. Ron had a bit more trouble. His broom kept wriggling over the ground but refused to go up. At last, after ten times saying 'up' he finally got his broom in his hand.

"Finally, Ron. We thought we would be here until dinner."

"Yeah, let's hope you have more talent at the flying thing than that."

The twins grinned at Ron who scowled in return, but refused to react otherwise.

"Now, mount your brooms. Very good."

"Make sure you have a good grip on the handle, but don't grip too tightly."

"Now kick off hard to hover. Don't move your upper body yet. Very good."

"Ron, keep your back straight!" George yelled, when Ron started gliding forward. "Good."

"Now if you lean forward and you think about going faster, you will accelerate. If you lean backwards and you think about braking, you will slow down."

"Lean left and you will turn left, lean right and you will turn right."

"Push the handle down and you will descend, pull the handle up and you will ascend."

"Simple isn't it?" the twins finished together.

Harry thought it sounded all pretty straightforward. He leaned forward and slowly accelerated to a fairly fast speed, then turned sharply when he reached the tree line. He pulled the handle up and ascended until he reached the top of the trees and then pushed the handle down and leaned forward to go in a dive. He pulled up just in time to skim the grass and landed gracefully. He looked up and saw the twins looking at him with open mouths.

"What?" Harry asked bewildered. "Did I do something wrong?" He tried to remember what he had done but couldn't think of anything that he could have done wrong. At least, that was what he thought. It was his first time on a broom, so he really had no references to compare it to.

"Wrong?" the twins said together. "That was bloody BRILLIANT."

"Are you sure that was –"

"- your first time on a broom?"

Harry nodded and felt elated.

"Wood will be thrilled to have new talent on the Quidditch team. You do want to play Quidditch, don't you?"

"Yeah, I really would like to play it," Harry replied. He had heard all about the game from Ron.

In the meantime, Ginny and Ron had gained control over their broomsticks. Ginny was flying quite fast and gracefully around the pitch, while Ron still had some difficulty controlling his broomstick, even though he was not flying too badly himself. Harry got back on his broomstick and started flying around the pitch, his moves becoming more spectacular and daring by the minute. After a half hour of flying, the twins called them back down, because their mother would soon be home and they really didn't want to get caught.

"That was amazing!" Ginny breathed when she landed. She was sweating and panting from the flying but she was positively glowing with glee. "We have got to do that again."

"It seems like we have a lot of Quidditch talent here today," George said appreciatively.

"I guess we underestimated our little sister," Fred agreed.

The twins looked at each other, nodded and both dropped on their knees in front of Ginny.

"Oh no, not again!" Ginny groaned.

"All heil Ginevra Weasley, Lady of the Burrow," Fred and George chanted simultaneously. "We have underestimated your incredible talents once again. Your humble servants seek your forgiveness. Please have mercy on our poor, unworthy souls."

"Mum made them apologize once for some prank they pulled," Ron explained in a hushed voice, when Harry looked confused. "They didn't really feel sorry, so they just made a joke out of it by doing it this way. Ever since then, they always act like this when they apologize to Ginny. She hates it, by the way."

"Really," Harry muttered. He walked over to Ginny and offered her his arm like he had once seen in a movie at the Dursleys. "My Lady, May I have the pleasure of escorting you to the Burrow?" he said in a very formal voice with a small bow.

She looked stunned for a moment but started giggling when she saw the look on the face of the twins. They were shocked to see little, shy Harry joking around like that with their sister.

"Certainly, My Lord," Ginny played along. She took his arm gracefully and they walked arm in arm back to the Burrow, both of them grinning broadly.

-----------------

Harry woke up early on his birthday, just like any other day. He looked around the room he got from the Weasleys – Bill's old room – and still couldn't believe his luck. He no longer lived with the Dursleys and never had to go back. On top of that, he now had a wonderful family and two very good friends. Ron and Harry really got along great and were most of the time hanging out together, but Ginny had fast become his best friend.

They had a lot of fun together. They joked around, laughed together and lately they had taken on the habit of pranking the twins. Two days ago, they had put a little bit of clay in the tips of the shoes of the twins. When Fred and George tried to put them on, they found that the shoes were too small, but only just. They walked around with sore toes all day, fully convinced that their feet had grown two sizes in one night. When they finally discovered the clay, they cornered the three younger children and asked if they knew anything about the foreign substance in their shoes. Ron didn't know anything, but he made himself look guilty when he started laughing. Ginny and Harry put on an innocent face and pretended that they knew nothing about it. Ginny was so convincing in her act, that even Harry would believe her, if he hadn't seen her putting the clay in the shoes in the first place.

While they had a lot of fun, they had their serious moments together too. When one of them felt down for whatever reason, the other would listen to what was wrong, offer comfort and then the both of them would be cheerful again.

Harry had really bloomed open these last weeks, but he still didn't trust easily. Charlie had come home four days ago and it had taken Harry three days to relax a little around the guy. Charlie was a sight to behold too, anyways. He had broad shoulders and thick, muscular arms. On one of them, there was a big, shining burn. From one of the dragons, he had said, when Ron had asked about it.

Today, however, Harry turned eleven. He would get his Hogwarts letter today, or so Dumbledore had told him. Harry relished the moment for a second and then got out of bed. He dressed quickly in some of the new clothes he got from Dumbledore (they actually fit!) and went downstairs.

When he entered the kitchen, he got the shock of his life.

"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" ten voices screamed. Before he knew it, he was swept of his feet in a hug by an overenthusiastic Ginny. Both of them fell backwards on the ground, laughing out load. Ginny was lying on top of him and was struggling to get up, but that proved difficult since Harry was struggling too. Finally she gave him a kiss on the cheek, which caused him to lay still long enough for Ginny to roll of off him.

Ron pulled both of them on their feet, a smirk on his face, and Ginny led Harry to the people in the room that he had never met before. One of them, he recognized from the pictures in the living room. It was Ginny's brother, Bill. He didn't look at all like any of the pictures Harry had seen, though. His hair was long now where it used to be short and in his ear he wore a large fang from some sort of animal. Bill claimed it was a dragon's tooth but Charlie had told him in confidence that it was actually the tooth of a large dog. The eldest of the Weasley children had come home from Egypt to celebrate Harry's birthday and to welcome him to the family. That and the fact that Bill was Ginny's favourite brother, made him extremely likeable to Harry.

The other was a massive man. He simply looked too big to be allowed. His long jet-black hair and beard were tangled and wild and gave the man a dangerous look. But once you saw his eyes, you just knew that this man would never hurt a thing in his life. They were kind and loving and Harry liked him on sight. He smiled broadly when he saw Harry.

"Hiya, Harry," he said. "I'm Rubeus Hagrid. Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts." He smiled proudly when he stated his title. "I haven't seen you since you was only a baby. Blimey, look at you now! You look jus' like yer father. Great man, he was, great man." The giant man was silent for a moment and his eyes were unfocused. "Oh, righ'. I've got a letter for ya," he said, smiling again. "Dumbledore sent me to give it to ya. He wanted to come himself to wish ya a happy birthday but he had important business to attend to."

Harry smiled at the man and opened the letter he got.

_  
**HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY**_

**_Headmaster: __Albus__ Dumbledore_  
_(Order of Merlin, 1st Class, Grand __Sorc.,__Chf__. Warlock, Supreme __Mugwump__, International __Confed__. of Wizards)_**

**_Dear Mr. Potter,_**

**_We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on 1 September. The train will leave from King's Cross at 11 a.m. from platform nine and three quarters. We hope to see you then._**

**_Yours sincerely,_**

**_Minerva McGonagall_  
_Deputy Headmistress_**

**_  
_**"I guess we're going to Hogwarts together then," he smiled at Ron. Ginny was standing a little sad to the side. "I really wish you could come too," he whispered to her. She gave him a sad smile and squeezed his hand seeking comfort.

"Presents next!" Ron shouted.

Presents? He was getting presents? He had never got any presents before. His face lit up like a Christmas tree. The first present he got was from Ron. The boy had given him a Chudley Cannons hat – Ron's favourite Quidditch team – and a bunch of magical sweats. He liked the chocolate frogs best. They were moving pieces of chocolate, but the interesting part were the cards of famous witches and wizards that came with them. You could collect them. Ron already had over five hundred.

From Charlie he got a dragon leather belt and from Bill a miniature walking mummy. Percy had given him a beautiful eagle feather quill. The twins had given him some joke-stuff from a store called Zonko's. He was especially pleased with the present from Dumbledore. The headmaster had sent him a picture of his parents, the first one he had ever seen. Harry's eyes became moist when he saw it but he was happy to finally see what his parents looked like. He had to admit it; he really did look like his father. Except for the eyes, of course.

Hagrid had bought him a beautiful snowy owl. He and Ginny immediately named her Hedwig, a name they had read in a History of Magic text book from the twins. Finally Ginny gave him two nice shirts. One bottle green and the other one black. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley gave him a very special present. First they gave him an official paper confirming that he finally was adopted by the Weasleys. Mrs. Weasley pulled him in for a bone-crushing hug. At first he stiffened at the touch, but Ginny's hand in his allowed him to calm down and relax into the hug. Next they led him to the living room and showed him the family clock. He nearly got a tear in his eye when he saw the extra hand on it.

"Since you are now an official member of this family, you get your own place on the family clock," Mr. Weasley explained. "We are proud and glad to call you our family. Happy birthday, Harry!"

"Thank you, Mr. Weasley," he said with watery eyes.

"Now, Harry. Since you are family, none of this Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stuff. You can call us mum and dad, but if you think that's too weird Molly and Arthur will do."

"Thank you – Arthur," Harry replied smiling. "I don't think I'm ready yet to call you mum and dad. Maybe someday. Thank you for accepting me in your family."

He really had a family now. A good family. One that really liked him. It still seemed surreal to him.

He enjoyed his breakfast with his family. Molly really had outdone herself. She had made every kind of breakfast food imaginable. Apparently she did this each time when it was one of her children's birthdays. It made him feel special and normal at the same time. It made him feel – accepted. A feeling he had never had before in his life. For the first time he really felt like – home.

------------------

After breakfast, Ginny took him to their secret place. Since they always went to the secret place together, Ginny had wanted to change the name. It was now called 'Ginny and Harry's place'. She sat down next to him and pulled a small package out of her pocket.

"I've got another present for you," she said, "but I wanted to give it to you in private."

He looked at her in surprise. "Thanks, Gin," he said delighted.

She raised an eyebrow. "Gin?"

"I just like the sound of that," he said shrugging. "You don't mind me calling you Gin, do you?"

"Since it's you, no, I don't. Every other person would be in big trouble for calling me that."

"Thanks, Gin. That makes me feel special." He turned his attention to his gift. Slowly he unwrapped it, savouring the feeling that getting presents gave him. Inside was a beautifully woven, leather bracelet.

"I made it myself," she said brightly. "Do you like it?"

"I love it," he answered smiling, admiring her work. "Can you put it on?" He gave her the bracelet and stuck out his arm. Carefully she attached it and then he held his arm up to see the result. "It's beautiful, Gin. Thank you." He gave her a kiss on the cheek to express his gratitude. It was the first kiss he had given in his life. Ever. She turned a little pink in the cheeks after that. She really looked lovely that way.

He felt something growing in his heart when he saw her like this but he had never felt anything like it before. It felt comfortable and warm but it scared him a bit at the same time. It was something to think about. Right now, he just wanted to enjoy his birthday with this girl who had become so important to him.


	2. Chapter 2: Together A Dream

DISCLAIMER: Nothing belongs to me except the crazy things these characters get up to. I'm just playing with Rowling's wonderful characters.**  
**

AN: Here we are with the second chapter. Thanks again to etj4eagle for his work. If you could take the time to leave me a review, it would be very much appreciated.

Enjoy the story!

* * *

**Chapter 2: Together A Dream**

The next day, Arthur took Ron and Harry to Diagon Alley to buy their school supplies. Ginny had begged her parents to let her come too, but Molly wanted to do a very thorough cleaning of the house and she wanted Ginny to help her. Ginny had stormed angrily out of the door after the discussion. Harry had made to go after her, but Arthur had stopped him, saying that she would be ok; she just needed to blow of some steam. Reluctantly, Harry gave in.

Now they were walking through the crowded street. Everywhere he looked something interesting was happening. He tried to look at everything at once and was fascinated by all the magic around him. When they passed a shop called 'John's Quidditch Goods and Supplies', Arthur had to drag Ron away from the shop, because he had started drooling all over the show window. Behind the glass a beautiful broom was showcased. Its handle was dark mahogany wood and it had golden lettering on the side that read 'Nimbus 2000'. Even Harry, who didn't know anything about broomsticks, was fascinated by the amazing piece of craftsmanship.

"We need to go to Gringotts first, as we have to get some money to buy your things," Mr. Weasley explained.

"Gringotts?" Harry asked.

"Yes, Harry, it's the wizard bank, run by goblins. Hagrid is supposed to meet us there to give you the key to your vault."

Harry nodded slowly. By now they had reached Gringotts. It was a tall white building, its entrance blocked by massive golden doors. Two goblin guards in red and gold uniforms were guarding the entrance. They were short, about a head shorter than Harry, with pointed beards and long fingers and feet. They looked clever and sharp and something told him that you shouldn't mess with these creatures.

His impression was confirmed when they approached a second set of doors, silver this time. They had words engraved on them:

_  
**Enter, stranger, but take heed**_**  
_Of what awaits the sin of greed_  
_For those who take, but do not earn_  
_Must pay dearly in their turn_  
_So if you seek beneath our floors_  
_A treasure that was never yours_  
_Thief, you have been warned, beware_  
**_**You may find more than treasure there**_

_"What do they mean by that, Mr. We … eh … Arthur?" Harry asked, pointing at the poem._

_"Just what it says, Harry. That the vaults are very well protected and you would be crazy to try to steal from them," Arthur answered. "It's even rumoured that they have dragons down there to guard the vaults, but I'm not sure that's true. I've never seen one and I've been down there a lot of times before. Oh, look, there's Hagrid."_

_The gamekeeper's eyes lighted up when he caught sight of the young boy. "Harry!" he boomed. Several people startled at the sound and some of the goblins looked disapprovingly at the source of the noise._

_"Hi, Hagrid!" Harry greeted smiling._

_"Good day, Rubeus," Arthur greeted too. "You have Harry's key?"_

_"Yeah, I've got it righ' here," the giant man answered patting his breast pocket. "Maybe I can take Harry 'ere to his vault? I've to get somethin' from a vault meself."_

_"Sure. I have to visit my vault too. How about we meet here afterwards?" Arthur proposed._

_"Fine by me."_

_Hagrid led Harry to one of the desks. "Good morning," he said to the goblin. "Mr. Potter would like to get some money outta his vault."_

_"Does Mr. Potter have his key?" the goblin asked._

_"Oh. I know I've got it here somewhere," Hagrid murmured. He began skimming the many pockets in his coat for the tiny thing. Five minutes and fourteen pockets later, Hagrid smiled in triumph and held up the small golden key. "Here it is!"_

_"That seems to be in order," the goblin said._

_"An' I've got to get somethin' else too. I've got a letter here from professor Dumbledore," Hagrid said. He lowered his voice to what he thought was a whisper. "It's about the –" He threw a sideways look at Harry. "The You-Know-What in vault seven hundred and thirteen."_

_The goblin accepted the letter and read it carefully._

_"Very well. Griphook!" he called to another goblin, "Please take Mr. Potter and Mr. Hagrid to their vaults."_

_Griphook bowed in acknowledgement and led the two through a door._

_"Hagrid, what's the You-Know-What?" Harry asked, as they walked through a long dark stone passageway with torches blazing on the walls._

_"Can't tell yeh that, Harry. Secret Hogwarts business. Very important," Hagrid answered mysteriously, looking proud to have been given an important job. Harry thought it better not to enquire further._

_They arrived at a railway track. Griphook called for a cart and soon it arrived driving on its own._

_"Please get in the cart, Mr. Potter and Mr. Hagrid. Make sure you keep all your limbs inside if you wish to walk out with all of them still attached," the goblin joked, or at least Harry thought it was a joke. The expression on the goblin's face sure looked a little like a smile, but then again the goblins didn't seem like the joke making kind._

_Harry and Hagrid climbed in the cart, Hagrid with some difficulty._

_"Vault six hundred and eighty-seven please," Griphook said to the cart. It set off at an amazing speed, rattling down the tracks. Harry enjoyed the fast ride down, but Hagrid didn't seem to agree. The longer the ride lasted, the greener his face became. When it finally stopped at Harry's vault, Hagrid got out as fast as he could and had to lean against a wall so he wouldn't sink through his legs._

_"Key, please," Griphook asked. Hagrid gave it to him and Griphook opened the door for them. Harry's eyes nearly popped out of its sockets when he saw the incredible amount of gold, silver and bronze in there._

_"Wow, is that all mine?" Harry whistled._

_"Yep, all yours," Hagrid smiled, standing a bit steadier. He quickly explained which coin was which and Harry shoved a large amount of the money in a money bag Griphook gave him. Then they exited the vault again and climbed in the cart, Hagrid following with a lot of hesitation this time._

_"Vault seven hundred and thirteen, please," Griphook said and the cart started moving again. It hurtled down the tracks at an even greater speed than before. A while and several turns later, the cart stopped in front of the vault._

_"Stand back, please," Griphook said. He ran his finger over the door and Harry heard locks starting to click. "If anybody else but a Gringotts goblin tried that, they would be sucked into the vault," the goblin said casually, his eyes gleaming when he spoke of that possibility._

_The vault creaked open and Harry peered inside, expecting to see heaps of gold and jewels. Nothing of that sort could be seen. In fact, at first Harry thought it was empty. But then he saw a very small package lying tucked away in a corner of the vault. Hagrid reached for it and stuffed it in one of his many pockets._

_"Best not talk about this to anyone, Harry," Hagrid whispered. "It's supposed to be a secret."_

_They took the cart back up and a few moments later they were reunited with Arthur and Ron._

_"See ya later, Harry, Ron and Arthur!" Hagrid boomed, walking out the doors._

_"Well, let's go get your things," Arthur said. "First stop, Flourish and Blotts!"_

_They got their school books there, their potion ingredients at the apothecary and their school robes at Madam Malkins. Harry noticed that while he bought everything new, Arthur and Ron ventured into the second hand section more than once. He felt bad about them having not so much money and he would have gladly shared his vault with them, but somehow he didn't think they would accept it._

_While Harry was waiting for Arthur and Ron to purchase Ron's robes he remembered a comment he had overheard Molly making a few days earlier, regarding the numerous number of birthdays that were coming up. Besides his own last month, Percy and Ginny both had their birthdays this month, so that made it three birthdays in a very short time. Molly had sounded elated at the prospect of having a reason to cook even more food than usual. Since everyone was home for the holidays, the occasions called for huge parties. And with a family of nine – ten, now, Harry reminded himself – they were huge parties. For his birthday yesterday, ten people were there to celebrate his birthday. TEN. Harry was amazed so many people had turned up to celebrate his birthday. Bill had even come all the way from Egypt just for him._

_The party itself was incredibly fun, with much talk and laughter. He had had a great time. Harry was really looking forward to the next two birthdays, especially Ginny's. Since she had given him such a wonderful present - he really loved the bracelet - he was determined to give her something nice in return. So once Ron and Arthur had finished up he led them into a small jewelry shop, where Harry spent a long time searching for the perfect present. Ron had a good laugh about it but shut up quickly when his father reminded him that he too had to get his sister a present. Ron's smile faded immediately and he quickly went to another shop to buy something himself._

_After a while, Harry found what he wanted and happily exited the shop with Arthur and Ron, who apparently had bought some candy for his sister. Harry was looking forward to Ginny's reaction to the present. It had cost him quite a bit, but she was worth every Knut of it. He really hoped she would like it as much as he liked her gift. While he was walking on Diagon Alley, he kept checking his pockets to make sure he hadn't lost the small box._

_"Oumpf," Harry groaned. He had just walked into another boy while buried in his thoughts. "Sorry," he murmured and helped the boy up._

_"Watch where you're going!" the other said angrily. The boy had long thin blonde hair that hung to his shoulders. His face was pale with high cheekbones. It gave him a distinguished air, but Harry thought the boy just looked conceited._

_"He said he was sorry," Ron snarled._

_"Now, Ron. Be nice," Arthur admonished._

_The blonde boy looked from Arthur to Ron, recognition dawning on his face. "Weasleys!" he spat. "I should have known."_

_"What's that supposed to mean?" Ron retorted, his ears growing red. Harry had learned in the past few weeks that was a sign he was getting angry. The Weasleys were the nicest people he knew, but most of them had quite a temper. When you saw one of the signs that one of them was getting angry, it was definitely time to bolt. They were very impressive when enraged, especially Molly._

_"Every one knows the Weasleys aren't a proper wizarding family," the boy sneered. "They're Muggle loving fools and they have no proper wizarding pride."_

_"TAKE THAT BACK!" Ron shouted, raising his fists threateningly._

_The boy just laughed and turned to Harry. "And what are you doing with those – people?" he said, curling his lip and making a disgusted face. "You're not a Weasley. Who are you anyway?"_

_"Harry Potter," he answered with clenched teeth, getting angry himself._

_"Really?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "I'm Draco Malfoy. You know, Potter, some families are better than others. I can show you who is worth hanging around with. You shouldn't hang out with the wrong sort of people." He held out his hand._

_"No, I shouldn't, but I can tell perfectly fine who is worth hanging around with," Harry answered coolly, ignoring the hand completely. Who did this boy think he was? Insulting his new family?_

_"Careful, Potter! You might go the same way as your parents," Malfoy said, his face contorted in anger. "They too didn't know what was good for them." He looked disgusted at the Weasleys once more and strode away._

_Harry was shocked by the behaviour of this boy. Ron was still seething in anger and Arthur was looking mad himself._

_"Don't worry about it, Ron," Arthur soothed his son. "That's the son of Lucius Malfoy. It seems like he takes after his father." Arthur was silent for a second. "Be careful around him at Hogwarts boys. If he really is like his father, he can be a lot of trouble."_

_Following that incident, the rest of their shopping was completed in silence until they stopped for some ice-cream at Florean Fortecue's Ice-Cream Parlour. Harry was nearly jumping with glee when Arthur announced their break. He never had an ice-cream before, if you don't count the ice lolly he had on Dudley's birthday. When Arthur led the two kids in the shop, Harry's eyes threatened to jump out of his sockets. There must have been a hundred different flavours to choose from. He briefly thought of the enthusiasm Ginny would display at the sight of this. She really loved everything sweet. He supposed this shop would look like heaven for her._

_Thinking about Ginny dampened his spirits a bit. He really would love to share this moment with her. Everything seemed so much more fun when she was around. Nevertheless, he still enjoyed the cold strawberry and lemon flavoured snack. Once the ice-cream was finished, they went looking for the last item on Harry's list: a wand._

_"You can get the best wands here at Ollivander's," Arthur pointed. "Come on, let's go inside."_

_They entered the shop and looked around in amazement. The place was dusty and the back wall was covered with rows and rows of long, thin boxes stacked at least fifteen feet in the air. A wizard was sitting behind a desk and looked up when the three entered._

_"Mr. Weasley. It's been a long time. How are you today?" the wizard greeted. "Do you still have your wand? Oak, eleven and a half inches and sturdy, wasn't it?"_

_"Yes, Mr. Ollivander. I still have it and it's still functioning perfectly," Arthur responded. "I'm here today to get young Harry his first wand."_

_"Ah, Mr. Potter. I wondered when I would be seeing you," Mr. Ollivander said. He was an old, balding man with small round glasses on his face. What little hair he had left, was white as snow. He looked friendly enough, but there was something strange about him._

_"I still remember the day your parents were here for their first wands," he told Harry. "Your father had an excellent wand, powerful and very good for Transfiguration. Mahogany, eleven inches and pliable. A very fine wand indeed. Now your mother, she preferred a willow wand, ten and one quarter inches and swishy. A good wand for charm work."_

_He rummaged through the boxes and pulled out five different ones._

_"Now, let's see you try this one," he said, putting a wand in his hand. Harry stood there dumbly staring at the piece of wood in his hand not knowing what to do now. "Don't just stand there. Give it a wave."_

_Harry did so, but nothing happened and almost immediately the wand was pulled out of his hands._

_"No, no. This is not the one," Ollivander said, shaking his head. He gave him another one and again nothing happened. Wand after wand he tried, but nothing seemed to satisfy Mr. Ollivander._

_"Oh, a tricky customer, are you? No matter. We'll find the perfect match for you," he said happily. The more wands Harry tried, the happier Mr. Ollivander seemed to become, but Harry was getting irritated._

_"I wonder –" Ollivander said, looking at a very nice wand. "Holly and Phoenix feather, eleven inches, nice and supple. An unusual combination, but powerful. Very powerful."_

_He gave the wand to Harry. Immediately when he grasped it in his hands, Harry felt a tingling sensation running through his body. The wand felt warm and comfortable in his hand, like it was something he had missed for a long time, but finally found again. He gave it a wave and an impressive shower of sparks came out of the top._

_"Yes," Mr. Ollivander said happily. "Your wand has found you." Then he grew more serious. "Curious," he said softly. "Very curious."_

_"What's curious, Mr. Ollivander?" Harry asked._

_"Well, I can remember every wand I've ever sold," he said looking intently at Harry. "The core of your wand is a Phoenix feather. That Phoenix only gave two feathers to me to make wands with. It is curious that you are destined for this wand, when its brother gave you that scar."_

_"You mean Voldemort –" The two Weasleys gasped behind him at the mention of the name, but Harry ignored it. "– has the wand with the other feather?"_

_"Indeed. You see, Mr. Potter. It is not the wizard who chooses the wand. It is the wand that chooses the wizard. I believe this means you are destined for great things. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did many great things himself. Terrible, yes, but great things."_

_The three people were silent for a moment, but then the silence was broken by Mr. Ollivander._

_"Young Mr. Weasley," he said to Ron. "I didn't see you there. Are you here for your first wand too?"_

_"No, Mr. Ollivander," he answered softly. He took out Charlie's old wand. "I already have one," he said holding it up._

_"Oh yes, I remember this one. Beech, ten inches. Short, but sturdy. It was your brother Charlie's, wasn't it?"_

_"Yes, Mr. Ollivander."_

_"Can you come here for a moment?" he asked. Ron did so and Ollivander studied the boy and the wand for a moment._

_"No, no, this won't do. This wand is not compatible with you at all. You should get a new one. You'll get much better results with a wand that chooses you," he said._

_"I'm sorry, Mr. Ollivander. But we just can't afford it at the moment," Mr. Weasley said sadly._

_Harry saw his chance. "I'll pay for it," he said quickly._

_"No, Harry, that's too much. We can't accept that."_

_"Why not? I have just seen my vault. I have more than enough for years to come," he insisted._

_"But –" Arthur tried._

_"Please, Arthur. Let me do this. You have accepted me in your family even when you barely knew who I was. You gave me a home. This is the least I can do in return," Harry said sincerely._

_Arthur sighed. "Very well. But only this once, Harry! We didn't make you part of our family so you could pay for everything."_

_Harry had managed to convince Arthur, but Ron proved a bit harder. His pride was still in the way and so objecting, Ron began, "Harry, I can't -" Though at the same time that objection was blunted by the longing look Ron was casting at the boxes stacked behind Ollivander._

_"Sure you can. It is a gift to my new brother and friend. Please," Harry pleaded._

_Ron shook his head and gave in. He really would like a new wand after all. Mr. Ollivander skimmed happily through the boxes._

_"I think I have just the one for you. Here you go. 12 inches, yew and a unicorn hair in the core. Strong wand. Excellent for charms."_

_And indeed, the wand shot a nice amount of red sparks when Ron waved it. Happily he pocketed it and Harry paid for the two wands._

_Harry, Ron and Arthur returned to the Burrow in silence. Ron was admiring his new wand the whole way home, but Harry was lost in thought._

_He had the brother wand of Voldemort. Did that mean he would be evil, too? He shivered at the thought. He couldn't imagine hurting people. But still, the wand did choose him._

_He couldn't get home fast enough now. The worries he had were building up in his head and he could think of only one person who could help him cope with the new information. But when he arrived at the Burrow, she didn't come bounding down the stairs to greet them as he expected. If she wasn't in the house, he could think of only one place she could be. He hurried out of the house to go to their secret place in the woods. He entered through the bushes and let a breath escape in relieve when he saw his favourite redhead sitting there apparently staring into the bushes lost in thought. Harry needed her comfort and quickly walked up to her and took her hand._

_Squeezing Harry's hand even before she turned to look at him, they both felt their spirits lift the moment they touched. Now looking at Harry, Ginny with a sad look whispered, "I missed you today."_

_"What's wrong, Gin?" he asked, his own troubles forgotten._

_She looked into his eyes and smiled. "I'm afraid of what will happen in a month, when you start school," she said. "I missed you so much today and you were only gone for a few hours. How will we get through that?"_

_"I know, Gin. I missed you too today. I really don't know how we will manage. I mean, it's not just a few hours. It's almost ten months," Harry said softly. "It's going to be so hard." He imagined for a moment how it would be without her and suddenly he couldn't understand how he had survived at all the years before. He pulled her close in a hug to cleanse himself of all these dark feelings and was elated to feel her doing the same._

_"So, what happened today that got you all gloomy?" she asked._

_"What do you mean?" he said unconvincingly._

_"You can't lie to me, Harry," she said forcefully. Her eyes were flashing dangerously and suddenly he found himself spilling everything to her. She would find a way to make him feel better. She always did._

_"So what if the wand you have has the same core as Voldemort's? It's you that controls it, Harry. Not the other way around. I know you will do good things with it," she said with passion. Harry was relieved that she still liked him and that she wasn't scared of him. He also knew she was right. He could never hurt anyone on purpose. He would never be like Voldemort._

_"Thanks, Gin," he said with a small smile. "You always know what to do to make me feel better."_

_"I know. You do the same to me. I'm just returning the favour," she answered, returning the smile. Then it turned to a wicked grin. "Want to prank the twins again?" Harry laughed broadly at the prospect._

* * *

_Harry was sitting nervously on the small wooden box in his and Ginny's secret place. It was her birthday today and he had slipped a note under her door that said to meet him here as soon as she woke up. He had been waiting here for fifteen minutes already and was beginning to get nervous. What if she didn't come? Or if she didn't find the note? Or …_

_But his doubts were relieved when the beautiful redhead pushed her way through the bushes. She looked amazing today. Her hair was pulled back in a pony tail and it almost seemed to be on fire when the sunlight caught it. But what mesmerized him the most today, were her warm chocolate brown eyes. They were smiling and lit with joy. He found himself smiling back broadly and held his arms open when she walked in._

_She threw herself in his arms and both held each other for a few minutes._

_"Happy birthday, Gin," he said softly and gave her a kiss on her forehead._

_"Thanks, Harry," she said warmly. They sat down on the boxes and she grabbed his hand as usual. They sat in silence for about ten minutes, enjoying each others company, until Ginny broke the silence. "Why did you want me to come here?" she asked, getting a bit impatient. "I don't think it was just to sit here. Not that I don't enjoy that, but –"_

_"I like that too, but you're right. That's not really why you're here," he said. "I have a small present for your birthday." He took the small box out of his pocket and gave it to her. "I saw this at Diagon Alley and I just had to get it for you," he smiled._

_She looked surprised and quickly ripped of the wrapping. It held a small, rectangular velvet covered box. Agonizingly slow she opened the box. A shout of glee escaped her mouth when she saw what it held. She took out the beautiful silver bracelet and stared at it in admiration._

_"I've never had anything so beautiful," she whispered, adoring the slender sliver chain and two beautiful charms it held. Her eyes opened wide when she realized what they represented._

_"The charms represent you and me," Harry explained unnecessary. "The lightning bolt obviously represents me and the flame represents you. I found it a fitting symbol," he said with a grin. "Together they represent the friendship we have. You are the first friend I ever had and I just wanted to show you how much that means to me."_

_"I love it, Harry. And it means a lot to me too. I will wear it all the time," she promised. "Here, can you put it on my arm?"_

_He did so and looked at the girl adoringly. What had he ever done that got him this incredible life? Just a month and a half ago, he was more miserable than ever and today, he was happier than he had ever been before. He couldn't believe the incredible turn his life had taken in the last weeks._

_He sighed happily and pulled her closer again. He craved more and more for these moments every day. His chest hurt when she was away for long. He needed her. He couldn't understand what was happening. He had never needed anything before in his life. But the moment he had met Ginny that had changed. Right now, he didn't feel right when she was not around. He felt … incomplete somehow. Like part of him was missing. And when he saw her again, her presence filled his mind and his heart and he found that that hollow feeling had disappeared. That he was complete again._

_He was ripped from his thoughts by a loud, shrill voice._

_"GINEVRA MOLLY WEASLEY! IT MAY BE YOUR BIRTHDAY, BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN RUN OFF LIKE THAT WITHOUT TELLING ANYONE. GET BACK INSIDE IMMEDIATELY!"_

_"Damn," she cursed. "Mum doesn't sound happy."_

_"Language, Ginevra!" Harry admonished lovingly. She looked at him angrily, but he could see the corners of her mouth twitch._

_"Easy, Potter. You might get away with calling me Gin, but don't call me Ginevra again if you know what's good for you!"_

_"Ok, ok," he chuckled, his hands up in defeat, but then sobered up. "I think we better go back inside, if we don't want to enrage your mum any more."_

_"Yeah," she sighed. "I wish we didn't have too. But, then again," she said brightening up, "it's my birthday and there are other presents waiting. I don't think anyone could top the one that you gave me, though," she said sincerely. "Thank you, Harry. It's the most beautiful present I ever got, from anyone."_

_Harry felt himself glowing with pride at the praise._

* * *

_That evening, before they went to bed, Harry and Ginny shared another long hug, before wishing each other good night. After that, Harry lay down in his bed, relishing the memories of the day. It had been a huge celebration for Ginny's birthday with loads of food and all of the Weasleys were there to celebrate. Ginny had proudly shown her bracelet to the entire family. It made him feel warm inside that he had made her so happy with something so simple. He found that he loved giving presents, even more so than getting them. He loved to see the smiles on the faces of the persons opening them._

_He wondered what it was about Ginny that made him feel so at ease and so … good. From the moment he had stepped into the kitchen that first day at the Burrow, he had felt like that. He was pulled to her for reasons he didn't understand. Harry never had a friend in his life before and never had anyone that liked him before, so he never had to get close to someone. He didn't feel comfortable around other people. So why did it feel so different with Ginny? She had grasped his hand that day leading him to her secret place and from the moment they touched, he never wanted to let go off her soft hand again._

_The first few days at the Burrow he had spent every waking moment touching her in some way. Holding her hand or just sitting close to her with knees, toes, or some other part of their bodies touching. The whole situation was so new and unfamiliar to him and everything was intimidating, but she had helped him cope. Her presence had relaxed him and slowly he had started to grasp the fact that he was no longer alone. He had a family, two adoptive parents who liked him and a whole bunch of brothers. And then there was Ginny. He knew she was part of his family now too. She was his best friend and so much more. He was still wondering about how much more when he drifted to sleep._

___Harry was standing in a large field. The sky above him was a dazzling blue and the sun shone warmly. Flowers were growing everywhere and butterflies were fluttering around. He knew it was a dream, as he remembered going to bed not so long ago. Still he liked it and for now, he didn't want to wake up. He started walking around, enjoying the peace and quiet. He felt so at ease here, even though he could sense someone else was around. He turned around and peered in the direction he thought the other person was. He even felt like he should know who it was. Still he couldn't see anyone and dismissed it as a trick of the mind._

___Harry had been walking for a minute or two, when he reached a small stream. He turned right and started following it. Suddenly his ears caught something that didn't belong here. Not in this empty vastness. A voice… He listened more closely. Yes, there it was again, a soft, warm voice, singing a gentle tune. He couldn't hear the words, but the voice was soothing and comfortable and oddly familiar._

___Straining his ears to determine the origin of the song, he slowly and silently closer, trying not to disturb however it was that was singing. And then there she was! His mind wasn't playing tricks after all. The red hair was swaying in the soft cooling breeze. It caught the light at times and at that moment it glowed red and gold and seemed to be on fire. She was picking flowers and appeared to be oblivious to the person watching her. _

___Unable to keep silent any more, he enthusiastically yelled out, "Ginny!" before running over to where she was standing with a large smile plastered on his face. She looked up and saw him. For a moment she looked confused and then she smiled back, rushing out to meat him. _

_"__Harry? What are you doing here?" she asked confused, but hugging him anyway._

_"__What do you mean?" he asked. "I'm just dreaming. This is a dream isn't it?"_

_"__I think so," she answered. "I dream about this place a lot, but mostly I'm alone. I never dreamed about you. Well, at least not about you being in this place." She blushed at that last statement, making Harry wonder what exactly she dreamed about that involved him; though he pushed that question from his mind to deal with the matters at hand._

_"__What is this place anyway?" he asked, looking around._

_"__It is a large field about four miles from the Burrow. We often come here – or go there – for a picnic," she explained. "Are you the real Harry or are you part of my dream?" she asked hesitantly._

_"__I am the real Harry, but I think the dream Harry would say the same," he answered logically. "Why don't you ask me in the morning after we wake up? We'll see about it then. In the meantime, let's just enjoy this dream."_

___He smiled and moved closer taking her hand. He marvelled at how real she felt. He was sure it was a dream somehow, just as he somehow knew she was there for real. They were sharing a dream._

_"__Does this happen often in the wizarding world? Two people sharing a dream, I mean?" he asked._

___Her brows furrowed in concentration for a moment, but then she shook her head. "Can't say that I've ever heard of anything like that." Then she smiled. "It's kind of fun, isn't it."_

_"__Yeah, it is," he admitted._

_"__Do you want to go swimming?" she asked, pointing at the stream._

___He looked at the water somewhat reluctantly. "I can't swim," he finally said embarrassed._

_"__Really?" she said in surprise._

_"__Yeah, my relatives didn't want to pay for swimming lessons, so I never learned."_

_"__I can teach you," she offered. "That way maybe you can swim when we try it for real. And you shouldn't be afraid of drowning here. It's just a dream after all."_

___Harry felt like he had no choice now, but he still felt a bit reluctant to enter the water. It wasn't that he didn't want to learn, but the prospect of having water all around him scared him a little. He really didn't like the idea of being enclosed anymore. "We don't have any swimming suits," he said somewhat desperately. But just as soon as he said that their clothes changed and now they were both wearing swimming gear. Ginny was wearing a blue one piece suit and a huge grin, while Harry had black swimming trunks._

_"__No more excuses, Harry. Now, get in the water!" Her eyes flashed as she said this, daring him to object. Knowing he had lost the fight – she always won them anyway and he gladly let her – he gave in and headed to the water._

___Slowly and carefully he took his fist steps in the water. He had expected it to be cold, but it wasn't. Instead it was agreeably cool, just the right temperature under the warm sun. Slowly he waded into the stream until the water came to his middle. The pressure from was not at all stifling as he had expected. Instead it felt good around him. Slowly a smile formed on his face._

_"__There, professor Weasley," he grinned. "I'm in the water. What do I do now?"_

___She thought for a moment. "First, you've got to get familiar with moving around in the water," she started. She moved closer until she stood just next to him. "Now lower yourself in the water and lean back. Just let yourself float. Don't worry about sinking, I will keep you up."_

___He did as he was told, but sunk a bit deeper than he expected and started panicking. He spluttered around and went under for a moment and came back up spitting out water._

_"__Really Harry. It's just water," she chuckled._

_"__Hey, no laughing!_ _You're supposed to be teaching me," he said somewhat angrily._

_"__Sorry, Harry. It's just that it's funny," she said. "Maybe you should wear one of those Muggle swimming aid thingies." She concentrated for a moment and the next moment he knew, he was wearing a swimming tube around his middle._

_"__HEY!" he yelled in shock. But then he laughed. If she could change things, then maybe he could too. After all, this was his dream as well. He imagined a large inflatable pool mattress appearing next to him and smiled when it did. He got rid of the tube with a thought and climbed on top of the mattress to relax in the sun._

___But Ginny had other plans. She dove under the water and swam quickly to where Harry was floating. When she was under him, she quickly came to the surface and tipped the mattress over, sending Harry screaming in the water._

___They played and spluttered like that in the water for some time. When they got bored doing that, they got out and laid down in the grass together, just enjoying each others company and after a while they slowly drifted out of the dream._

_The following morning when Harry woke up, he felt especially refreshed. He had a dream about Ginny – or with Ginny. Now that he was awake again, he wasn't sure anymore. But he remembered every little detail. Quickly, he got out of bed. As he opened his door, Ginny did the same across the hall. They stared in each others eyes for a few moments. Then at the same time they spoke._

_"Did we –?" they said together, followed by, "Was it –?" They understood each other perfectly, even though they didn't finish their sentences. It was real. It really happened. They had shared a dream together…_

_They smiled at each other, both hoping that it would happen again soon and happily joined each other for breakfast._

* * *

_Harry and Ginny continued to share dreams together, though it didn't happen every night. It had happened five more times in the following two weeks and each time they woke up the morning afterwards feeling more refreshed and rested then they normally were. The dreams together were always fun and intimate, since it was just the two of them. They could change the surroundings at will and used that power to create everything they wanted at the moment. Usually they created a place with water, since Ginny really liked to swim. She had taught Harry how the second time they dreamed together, though he wasn't good at it yet._

_It was only a week now before Ron and Harry were to leave for Hogwarts, leaving Ginny the only one remaining at the Burrow. She hated that and she hated even more to be separated from Harry for such a long time. Their new ability to share dreams made them feel a bit easier about being separated for a longer time, since they still would meet at night. At least they hoped they would. Hopefully Hogwarts wasn't too far away to connect with each other. It was a small comfort, but still they would be alone during the days._

_Today was exceptionally warm. Harry and Ginny planned on going for a swim in the pond to see if Harry could swim in the real world too. Currently they were sitting on the edge of the pond, with their feet dangling in the water._

_"Don't worry about it, Harry. I'm sure you'll do just fine," Ginny said encouragingly when Harry hesitated to get in the water. "You know that you already know how to swim. You just haven't done it in real life."_

_Harry looked up at her and saw confidence and trust shining in her beautiful chocolate brown eyes. __God, you have beautiful eyes, _he thought, staring in her eyes.

_"Why thank you, Harry. You have very beautiful eyes, too," she said blushing slightly._

_"You heard that?" Harry said stunned. "I didn't say that out loud, did I?"_

_"You didn't?" she asked, just as confused. "But I did hear it, Harry. I'm sure I did."_

_"I never said it out loud, but I did think it," Harry said, blushing himself._

___Could I have heard his thoughts? _Ginny thought and now Harry picked it up.

_"Now I heard you," he said with big eyes. "And I know you didn't say anything, because your mouth didn't move. How –"_

_"I don't know, Harry, but if we could talk without words…" she said thoughtfully, but then she smiled. __Do you hear me now? _Harry nodded. _Great! You say something!_

___This is incredible! We can talk to each other without speaking!_

_"I heard you again," she screamed in delight. "I like this. It makes me feel closer to you."_

_Harry smiled in response. "Me too. This is great. We should practice it a bit. You know, find out how it works and how far from each other we can communicate."_

_Ginny's face brightened even more. __Maybe we can talk while you're in Hogwarts. I really would like that!_ she thought to Harry.

___Me too,_ he answered and then out loud, "This is so cool!"

_"What is?" a voice suddenly said behind them. Ron was standing there in swimming gear, staring in confusion from one to the other._

___I don't want to tell him, Ginny_, Harry thought to Ginny. _This is between us alone._

___You're right, Harry, _she answered. _I don't want anyone to know about this, either.__This is our secret and ours alone._ And then she said to Ron, standing up. "The water, Ron, the water is cool. Want to see up close?" Then she gave him a push and he fell in the water spluttering.

_"HEY!" he exclaimed angrily, when he came back up. "What ya do that for?"_

_Harry and Ginny were laughing at the side. "Sorry, dear brother," she said. "It was an opportunity I couldn't resist." Then she turned to Harry. "Now, if you're done laughing at my brother, get in the water yourself." She added as an afterthought, __You_ _wouldn't want my brother to think you're afraid of water, do you? _That was all the motivation Harry needed and he quickly slipped in the water.

* * *

_They tried to determine the limits of their new ability later that day, but they were in for a disappointment. It appeared that they only heard snippets of each others thoughts when they were in hearing distance and they could only communicate fully when they were looking each other in the eyes. The realisation that they wouldn't be able to communicate when they were separated, really dampened their spirits, which had soared to an incredible high when they first found out about their 'thought-speak' as they called it. The prospect of being able to talk to each other at all times had appealed greatly to the both of them and now their hopes were squashed again._

_It took them a while to get out of the depressed mood, but as it was their last week together, they were determined to make the most of it. By the time they were having dinner, both of them were quite cheerful again. At the table they were constantly looking at each other and laughing and giggling even at times when the conversation around them really wasn't that funny._

_They drew a lot of suspicious looks from the others, but especially from Molly. Harry caught her frowning at them on several occasions. He wasn't sure what she was frowning about, but the glare that accompanied the frown didn't feel all that friendly to him. Harry ignored it, determined not to let anything disrupt the last week of the holidays._

_"What did you do today, Princess?" Arthur asked his daughter suddenly, successfully interrupting their soundless conversation._

___Oh, you are a princess now? Does that mean I have to address you with 'Your Highness'? _ Harry thought at Ginny in response to hearing that nickname, while raising an eyebrow.

_Ignoring Harry, Ginny answered her dad, but she still went a little pink. "We went swimming today, dad. It was far too warm to do anything else."_

_"More like you and me were swimming and Harry was trying to stay above the water," Ron snorted._

_"Hey! At least he stayed above the water. It was only his first time." She put on an evil grin. "I remember the first time you were in the water. You screamed like a little girl until dad got you out! You were afraid of water for months after that."_

_Ron's ears turned red and he ducked his head mumbling something about only being seven at the time._

___Nice one, Gin, _Harry thought grinning.

_Ginny flashed him a brilliant smile. __Thank you, Harry. But you do realize that the first time you were in the water, you were screaming too! Even if it was in our dream._

_Harry went red himself, earning more strange looks from the others around the table. It was probably weird to get embarrassed for no apparent reason._

___Don't worry, Harry. Nobody will ever know about our private lessons. _

_A little more at ease, he focused his attention back at the table._

_"… and they really don't know how they got in. They have been investigating for three weeks and the goblins don't even have a clue," Arthur said to his wife._

_"What happened?" Harry asked Fred, trying to get the thread of the conversation again._

_"Someone broke into Gringotts about three weeks ago and the goblins have no idea how it happened," Fred answered him. "Wait; there was something in the paper about that." He reached behind him for the Daily Prophet, a wizard newspaper, and gave it to Harry. The latter folded it open and started reading._

___**  
Gringotts Investigators Still No Lead**_

_****__Three weeks of thorough investigation at Gringotts Wizarding Bank revealed no new information. The Gringotts investigators are at a loss as to how the perpetrator gained access to a high security vault. The Bank Management offered no comment, but a spokesman for the Ministry could reveal a few facts: 'First of all, I want to press the fact that nothing was stolen from the vault. In fact, the vault in question, number seven hundred and thirteen, was emptied that very same day, just hours before the break-in, leaving the thief empty handed. Secondly, I want to ensure the wizarding public that their money is safe at Gringotts. The goblins have tightened security considerably. Of course I can't discuss any details for security reasons, but I can say honestly that the thief would be crazy to try again.'_

___**Of course the wizarding public isn't so sure that …  
**  
_

_Harry stopped reading and looked at Ginny. __That vault, 713, it was the one that Hagrid emptied the day I went to Diagon Alley. I was in that vault just a few hours before the break-in._

___Really?_ Ginny asked with raised eyebrows. _What was in it?_

___I don't know, _Harry answered truthfully and sighed. _It was a small package, barely larger than my hand. Hagrid wouldn't say what it was. The only thing he said was that it was secret Hogwarts business. He said I couldn't talk about it to anyone. _He smiled at her with a smug look in his eyes. _He didn't say anything about thinking it, though._

_Ginny smiled back at him and shrugged. __Our secret, Harry._ _Whatever was in it, it's not our problem. Forget about it. Are you up for some Exploding Snap?_

___Oh, I'm so gonna beat you, Miss Weasley!_

___Really, Mr. Potter?_ _I'd like to see you try._


	3. Chapter 3: Welcome To Hogwarts

DISCLAIMER: I've requested to have my name changed to Rowling, but they've denied it ... again. So still nothing of this belongs to me. Oh well, at least the characters do what I tell them to do.

AN: This chapter is a bit shorter. Don't worry, though. Next one will be nice and long again. Thanks to etj4eagle for the help and the ideas. Please take the time to leave a review!

**Chapter 3: Welcome to Hogwarts**

The first of September started in a daze. Everyone at the house was scurrying around frantically trying to do some late packing. Ron still had to pack everything, while Percy was the only one who didn't have anything left to do. He had packed five days ago and was waiting impatiently at the doorway and urging everyone on.

Harry threw his last books in his trunk, closed the lid and hurried down for breakfast. He sat down next to Ginny and hurriedly ate some breakfast. Harry had a hard time swallowing. He was incredibly nervous and had barely closed an eye that night. Not only was he once again going to a totally unfamiliar place, but today he was going to be separated from Ginny for a long time.

_Look at him,_Ginny scoffed mentally, directing Harry's gaze at Percy. She was sitting in the kitchen, glaring daggers at her older brother. _He can't wait to be out of here. By the way he acts you would think he's ashamed of being a Weasley!_

_Aren't you being a little hard on him? _Harry returned, adding a few sausages to his plate. _You're just a bit upset because you can't go to Hogwarts this year._

_So what if I am!_

_Easy, Ginny,_Harry soothed. He was shuffling food in his mouth with Ron-like speed. _The year will be over before you know it. _But as he said it, he knew it was a weak argument.

_I know, but it's still so long,_ she sighed. _You won't be here. I will miss you!_

_I will miss you too, Ginny. At least we can see each other in our dreams, _Harry replied, trying to stay positive. The year would be so hard without her.

_Now hurry up. Mum's beginning to go frantic. And so am I, for that matter. I want a long hug from you before you go._

_Ok, ok, almost done. _He quickly wolfed down the rest of his meal. _There, finished,_ he thought to her and almost ran to his room to get his trunk. When he got back down, Ginny was waiting down the stairs for him, looking very sad. He dropped his trunk and enveloped her in a soothing hug.

"I will be back before you know it," he whispered to her. "I'm going to miss you."

"Hey, little lovebirds!" two voices chorused suddenly from behind them.

"Mum's going crazy. You better –"

"- break it up. You don't want her to catch –"

"- you two in such a … compromising position."

"She already thinks you two are far too … close."

Fred and George were standing in the doorway, both grinning broadly at the two friends.

"Sod off, Gred and Forge," she huffed, without letting go of Harry. "If I want to give my friend a hug, then I can. Especially if I'm not going to see him for the next four months."

"Of course, Ginny. We understand. But –"

"- you know mum. She's a bit –"

"- old-fashioned," they finished both together.

"Yeah, tell me about it," Ginny sighed. "She still thinks boys and girls shouldn't talk to each other until they're married. She gave me the whole speech the other day about 'proper behaviour'."

"Really?" Harry asked and then mentally. _You didn't tell me about that._

_I was gonna tell you,_ she replied irritably. _Just forgot about it._

Before Harry could enquire further, Molly got in the room. At seeing the two of them hugging each other, she bristled and pulled the two apart.

"Ginevra! What did I tell you two days ago?!" Molly yelled. She was quite a sight to behold when she was angry. She would put her hands in her side and her face would get red. She seemed to grow taller with every word she yelled. It reminded Harry somewhat of his uncle when he was mad, but different at the same time. Molly loved her children, even when she was angry and she never hit her children at all. Even knowing that, she was still scary enough to make Harry take a few steps back and make himself small.

"MUM!" Ginny yelled back. "I was just giving Harry a goodbye hug. I'm not going to see him in four months. It's not like we were snogging."

Molly grew pale and deflated. "You two haven't – didn't – did you?" she stuttered pointing at Harry and Ginny with big eyes.

"No mum, we're just friends. I told you already." Ginny sighed exasperatedly. _Besides, we're too young for that. _She winked at Harry. _Maybe when we're a bit older._

Harry startled out of his cowering and looked at Ginny with big eyes while images flashed before his eyes of the two of them kissing. Oddly, he found himself looking forward at that moment and slowly his expression of shock changed to a silly grin. _Looking forward to it, Gin, _he sent back, causing Ginny to flush.

Molly continued to look suspicious at the two of them, but chose to remain silent to keep the peace.

"Will you hurry up already?" Percy yelled, entering the room. "We're going to be late."

That got Molly into gear again and she hurried everybody out the door. The light blue Ford Angelica was waiting on the driveway with Arthur standing besides its open boot. Of course the only reason why two adults, six children, and their entire associated luggage were able to fit in it for the trip to Kings Cross was because it had been magically expanded.

They arrived at the train station with just five minutes to spare.

"Hurry up, hurry up," Molly urged them on. "Get through the barrier! Percy! You first!" Without a look back he pushed the trolley with his trunk towards a ticket box between platforms nine and ten. For a moment Harry thought he was going to crash, but the moment he reached the barrier, he disappeared into thin air.

"The doorway is magically concealed," Ginny explained, seeing the confusion on his face. "Just walk to the barrier and you will go through. Come on." She took his hand and pulled him to the barrier before her mum could object. Once they were through, they entered a large, underground platform where a majestic red and black steam train was waiting for the students to board.

_Wow, _Harry thought. _It's huge!_

"Amazing, isn't it?" Ginny said, picking up his thoughts. She sighed once more. "I wish I could go with you!"

"Me too, Gin. Me too." He pulled her in a last hug before heading to the train with Ron to find a compartment. They heaved their trunks and their pets in and sat down.

"Be nice boys!" Molly called out to them from on the platform. "Especially you two," she added addressing the twins a couple of compartments away. "I'll see you all at Christmas!"

A whistle sounded and slowly the train began to move. Harry looked out the window and saw Ginny running along with the train with tears in her eyes, waving at him. He waved back enthusiastically and thought to her, _Don't worry about it, Gin. I'll be back before you know it._

_I know, Harry, _she sent back, _but I'm still gonna miss you!_

_See you later! _Harry said, as the train rolled out of the station.

"If you're done waving to my sister," Ron huffed, "how about a game of Wizard Chess?"

"Sure mate, why not," he replied.

Ron got the board out and started setting up the pieces. They had an enjoyable morning playing. When the food trolley passed, Harry used his newfound wealth to buy a lot of sweets to share with his friend. They were just about to dig into the large stack of chocolate frogs, Bertie Bott's Every-Flavour Beans, Pumpkin Pasties and Cauldron Cakes, when a bushy-haired girl stuck her head in the door.

"Has anyone of you seen a toad? A boy called Neville lost it. Oh, are those chocolate frogs? I've heard about those. They have a spell on them, but they can only jump once. I think it's a really clever charm. Do you know which house you'll be in? I think I'll be in Ravenclaw, but I really would like to be in Gryffindor. Professor Dumbledore was a Gryffindor, you know. I think it's a fabulous house."

Harry and Ron were trying to absorb the immense amount of information that the girl just unleashed upon the two of them, but it proved difficult. The words came rattling out and Harry couldn't even tell whether she was breathing or not.

At that time, another visitor appeared at the door, flanked by two large, heavy boys. Draco Malfoy was leaning against the doorframe.

"Gryffindor, hah!" he spat. "House of losers, if you ask me!"

"Then be glad nobody asked you," Ron returned immediately. Obviously he hadn't forgotten the encounter in Diagon Alley.

"Weasley! We meet again. Such a shame," Malfoy greeted sarcastically. "And Potter! Still hanging out with the same pathetic crowd I see."

"Malfoy, why don't you and your little friends go harass somebody else. We sure don't enjoy your company," Harry said, trying to stay calm. There was nothing little about his companions, but Harry wasn't going to let himself get intimidated.

"Sure, Potter. I'm leaving. Someone with your taste in friends – or girlfriends for that matter – isn't worth my time!"

Harry had to squash every instinct of his to keep himself from punching the arrogant boy in the face. He took a deep breath and searched for a witty response. "Good thing you know that you're far beneath us. Bye Malfoy!" He reached out and slammed the compartment door closed. Draco howled in pain when his hand got caught between the door and made a hasty retreat, his two cronies trailing behind him.

"Ugh," Ron spat, "I bet he'll be in Slytherin."

"Slytherin?"

"Yeah, the most hated house in Hogwarts. All the bad wizards are in that house. Merlin, I hope I'm not in Slytherin. Any house but Slytherin. My brothers will kill me if I end up there."

"It is not the house of bad wizards," the bushy haired girl said. "It is the house for the ambitious and the cunning. Just because you're in Slytherin, doesn't mean you're evil. It's all in 'Hogwarts, A History'. You're not in a house because you're good or evil, but based on your talents and personality. Ravenclaw is the house of those who work hard and are smart, Gryffindor is the house of those who are brave and righteous and Hufflepuff is for those who are loyal and honest. The houses are named after –"

At this point, Harry tuned her out. She was once again spewing facts and it was a bit much to take. He led his mind wander and thought about Ginny. How much he would give to sit with her on the train today, laughing and joking all the way. This year would be so hard on the both of them. Hopefully they still had their dreams together. It would at least give them some contact. Harry forced his thoughts away from Ginny and focused his attention back on Hermione, hoping to push away his incoming depression.

"– any of you know how they sort you in a house? I hope the test isn't too hard. I've learned all my books by heart of course. Do you think you have to do any spells?"

At this point Harry chose to interrupt. Ron looked overwhelmed and Hermione was getting red in the face. Harry was afraid she would run out of air if he didn't do anything.

"Hey, sorry to interrupt your – speech. What's your name anyway?" he said to the girl.

"Hermione Granger. My parents are Muggles, so it's the first time I'm among magical people. I find it quite exciting. I have –"

"Nice to meet you, Hermione," Harry interrupted again. "My name is Harry Potter. This is my friend, Ron Weasley."

"Are you really Harry Potter?" she asked with big eyes. Then she went back in academic mode. "I know all about you of course. I got a few extra books for background reading and you're mentioned in 'Modern Magical History', 'The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts' and 'Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century'."

"Am I really?" Harry said flabbergasted. He always forgot he was famous in the wizarding world. Nobody at the Burrow treated him that way, so it was easy to forget. He was a bit concerned about how the other kids at Hogwarts would treat him. He was happy just being Harry, so he hoped they wouldn't give him too much attention.

He sighed in relief when Hermione finally left the compartment. He hid his face in his hands and rubbed his eyes tiredly.

"What's wrong?" Ron asked, picking up his mood.

Harry looked up. "Just that everyone thinks they know who I am because they read about me in some book. Imagine that."

"Yeah. I noticed. Annoying girl, that Hermione, isn't she?"

"Nah, she's ok. She's just a bit – overexcited."

At that moment, a metallic voice announced that in five minutes time, the train would be arriving at Hogsmeade.

"We'd better change into our robes, mate," Ron said. He was looking quite pale and Harry was getting nervous too. The speech from Hermione about the test to be sorted had done nothing to ease their nerves.

Five minutes later, the train came to a stop and the two friends got out.

"Firs'-years here! Firs'-years!" a loud voice boomed over the platform. Hagrid was standing there, surrounded by some of the other first-years. They walked to him and said hello. "Oh, hiya, Harry and Ron. This way! Firs'-years! FIRS'-YEARS OVER HERE!" His voice thundered over the platform.

Finally, all the first-years were gathered around Hagrid.

"Follow me to the boats, everyone. Mind yer step now." They followed the huge man down a steep slope to the edge of the lake. A large number of small boats were waiting there for the group. "Four to a boat, please," Hagrid called out.

Harry and Ron got in one of the boats and were soon followed by a plump boy with a large toad clutched in his hands, called Neville, and Hermione. The moment she sat down, she was once again spilling facts about Hogwarts. Harry tried to listen, but found most of it uninteresting. After everyone was seated, the boat started moving on its own towards the other side of the lake.

"Keep your eyes open. You'll see Hogwarts in a few secon's. Jus' round the corner now," Hagrid announced, and indeed, after they rounded a rock, they could see Hogwarts in all its glory, perched high upon the rocks at the edge of the lake. The many turrets and towers gleamed in the moonlight under a clear sky filled with stars. Everyone 'oooohed' and 'aaaahed' and even Hermione was speechless for a few moments. Nobody spoke again until the boats reached the other shore.

The boats floated straight towards the cliffs under the castle. Just as Harry thought they were going to crash, a curtain of ivy parted and showed them a long dark tunnel. They were carried through it until they reached a small underground harbour.

"Everybody outta the boats," Hagrid boomed. His heavy voice shook the cave and some of the stalactites were trembling dangerously. They followed a long twisting stairway up. It was hewn in the rocks and lighted with torches. It gave the whole thing an eerie feel. The stairway ended in a large hallway. Two heavy doors sealed the entrance to the castle.

"Everyone here? You there, keep an eye on yer toad, will ya," Hagrid said to Neville, returning the toad that just got away again. Hagrid turned to the doors, raised one of his enormous hands and knocked hard. The doors swung open immediately. A stern looking witch with black hair tied in a bun stood there. She was wearing emerald green robes. Her eyes were scanning the new students. They were kind and soft but her attitude and posture showed that this was not a woman to cross.

"The firs'-years, Professor McGonagall," Hagrid said, swinging his arm out to indicate the large group. In the process he knocked down a suit of armour. He hastily made his retreat into the entrance hall and away from the clattering noise, his face flaming red.

McGonagall sighed but put the stern look back on her face quickly. "Follow me, please," she said to the crowd. She led them through the doors into the large entrance hall of the castle. It was so large the Burrow could have fitted in it several times. Four large hour glasses, filled with coloured marbles hung on the wall. Underneath them were the names of the different houses. Harry wondered what they were for. He followed the others through another set of doors, into a smaller chamber.

"Gather around, everyone!" McGonagall called out. "Welcome to Hogwarts everyone. In a few moments, I will lead you through these doors –," she said, indicating the doors behind her. "– into the Great Hall. The other students are already there." Harry could indeed hear the drone of the hundreds of voices coming from beyond the door. "Before you can join your schoolmates at the tables for the feast, you will be sorted. The Sorting Ceremony is very important, because it will sort you in your house. This house will be like your family for the rest of your time here at Hogwarts. Each house has its own table at the Great Hall and its own dormitory."

She continued explaining a bit about the different houses and the various rules of Hogwarts. Then she left the first-years alone for a few moments. The group was silently and nervously waiting for the sorting. Only Hermione was speaking. She sounded like she was reciting all her books one by one, trying to remember all the spells she could possibly need during the sorting.

After a few minutes, McGonagall returned to the room. "Everyone, follow me please!"

She led the first-years through the door to the Great Hall. All Harry could think about when he saw it, was 'WOW!' The Hall was enormous. There were thousands of candles floating around. Four long tables – probably the house tables – were filled with hundreds of students who were all staring at the new arrivals. The ceiling was so high, Harry couldn't see the top of the hall. In fact, when he concentrated harder on it, he could see stars twinkling in the dark vastness above him.

"The ceiling is charmed to look like the outside sky. I read about it in 'Hogwarts, A History'" Hermione's voice explained to him.

McGonagall led them to the staff table. Dumbledore was sitting on a large golden chair in the middle of that table, while on both sides of him the teachers were smiling at the new students. At least, most of them were.

McGonagall put a four-legged stool in front of the students, with a pointed hat on top. At that moment the room grew silent and everyone looked intently at the hat. Harry wondered what would happen. The hat stirred suddenly. A rip near the brim opened like a mouth and the hat began to sing an inspiring song about the qualities of the four houses. Afterwards, the Hall broke into a loud applause while the hat bowed its tip to each of the four tables. When the sound died down, the hat lay quite still again.

"May I have your attention please," McGonagall called out. "When I call your name, come to the front. You will sit down on the stool and put on the Sorting Hat. The hat will decide in which of the houses you belong. Once you've been sorted, join the table of your house for the feast." She took a long list out of her pocket and the sorting began. "Abbott, Hannah," she called out.

A pink-faced girl with blonde pigtails came to the front, trembling nervously. She put on the hat and it sank immediately over her eyes. It was silent for a few moments, before calling out, "HUFFLEPUFF!"

The table on the right cheered loudly and the girl ran over to that table, smiling broadly.

The row of students slowly shrank as more and more students were sorted. Hermione and Neville Longbottom were sorted in Gryffindor too and Malfoy became a Slytherin the moment the hat touched his head.

"Potter, Harry," McGonagall finally called out. The Hall broke out in whispers, no doubt thanks to his celebrity status. He took a deep breath and tried to walk confidently to the front, but he couldn't stop his hands from shaking. He sat down on the stool and McGonagall put the hat on his head. Immediately it sank over his eyes.

"Hmm, this is strange," the hat said softly in his ear. "There is you, but then there is another intertwined with you. Never before have I met two minds at once. Though, only one is here." Harry heard as the hat talked to itself. "Where is this other half of you?" the hat asked, finally addressing Harry.

"My – my other half?" Harry asked nervously.

"Yes, your other half," the hat confirmed. "I feel she's around here somewhere, but I can't seem to find her. May I look a little deeper, Harry? It will feel a bit unpleasant, but I assure you that it will not hurt."

Not knowing what else to do, he agreed. Not long after he felt a presence snooping around in his mind. It felt like fingers were poking at his brain, but like the hat said it didn't hurt. It just tingled a bit.

"Hmm," the hat whispered. "I think I may have found her." The poking continued a few more seconds. Suddenly Harry felt a jolt going through his head and immediately after the fingers retreated. "There we go," the hat said smugly. "Hello, Ginevra!"

_What? Who is this?_ Ginny's confused voice suddenly appeared in his head.

_Ginny?__Is that you?_Harry thought stunned.

_Harry? What's going on? How come we can talk to each other now? You're still at Hogwarts, aren't you?"_

_I'm under the Sorting Hat at the moment, _Harry said. _The hat said something about my other half and that he couldn't seem to find 'her'. And then he looked deeper and then suddenly I heard you._

"Yes, yes. You two can catch up later," the hat interrupted their conversation impatiently. "There are still a lot of people waiting to be sorted, so we must get on with it. First, a question for Ginevra. Why aren't you here?"

_What do you mean?_ Ginny asked.

"Why aren't you at Hogwarts?" the hat specified.

_I'm not supposed to start Hogwarts for another year. I'm too young._

"Really? Then I will see you next year, I'm sure, but I will sort you today anyway," the hat said. "You are two halves of one, so you must be sorted together. No other way. Now, let's see. Where to put the two of you? You are both loyal friends and have an honest soul, so that would put you in Hufflepuff. But then again, you two are hard workers and you don't have a bad mind either, so that would put you in Ravenclaw. You have brave and just hearts, fit to be in Gryffindor, but you have the cunning and the power of a Slytherin. Where to put you? Where to put you?

"I have to admit, I have no preference for any of the houses. You would do well in any of them. This never happened before. You two are quite the exceptional pair, I say. Since I have no opinion of my own, I will give you the choice. What house do you want to be in?"

_We can choose? _Harry thought stunned. _Hmm, Ginny, do you have any preference? Anything but Slytherin is ok with me. I really don't want to be in the same house as Malfoy!_

_I think I would like to be a Gryffindor,_ she answered thoughtfully. _My whole family has been in there and I'm sure that Ron will too._

_Then Gryffindor it is!_

The hat took this as a decision and shouted out, "GRYFFINDOR!" The table on the far left broke in to applause, the loudest so far, but Harry didn't hear any of it as he made his way to the table. He was replaying the conversation with the hat in his head.

_What did he mean? We are two halves of one?_

_I think –,_Ginny answered hesitating, _I think that it means we are destined to be together._

Harry was silent for a moment before replying, a blush creeping on his cheeks. _I don't think I would mind that, Gin._

_Yeah, me either_, she answered softly.

"Weasley, Ron," McGonagall called, successfully breaking the conversation in Harry's head.

"GRYFFINDOR!"

_Told you!_ Ginny gloated. _A Gryffindor, just like the rest of us._

"Congratulations, Ron," Harry said, when his friend joined him at the table.

"Thanks, Harry," he answered smiling. "Now, where is the food? I'm hungry!"

_He's always hungry that one, _Ginny sighed, as Harry watched the last of the first-years, 'Zabini, Blaise', get sorted in Slytherin.

_Yeah, I noticed. _Harry grinned back, earning him a strange look from Hermione. _I don't know where he puts it most of the time. He eats more than all your other brothers combined._

At that moment Dumbledore spoke up. "I have only a few words before we begin our excellent feast and here they are: Nitwit! Blubber! Oddment! Tweak!

"Thank you! Tuck in!"

A vast amount of foods appeared on the tables. Harry never had seen so many types of food together, even at the Burrow. He quickly stacked his plate with all the things he liked.

He tried to make some light conversation with the other first-years at the table. He liked Dean Thomas well enough. He was Muggleborn and crazy about football. Harry had a hard time to keep himself from laughing, when Dean tried to explain the rules of the game to Ron.

Seamus Finnigan was another story completely. He seemed likeable enough but he was extremely loud and extrovert, telling jokes all the time. Harry, and Ginny for that matter, found him a bit much to take. Neville Longbottom seemed a nice boy, even if he was a bit shy. He talked all about his Great Uncle Algie and how he had dropped Neville out of the window to test if he had any magical ability. Neville thought this was normal, but Harry found it kind of cruel. He and Ginny decided to befriend this boy. He looked like he could use a few friends.

Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil were instant friends. They were already huddled together and seemed to be whispering important things to each other and pointing at some of the other students at the tables. Ginny said they were probably gossiping, whatever that meant.

Hermione Granger was caught up in a serious conversation with Percy. Harry remembered what she was like on the train and refrained from entering the conversation. Instead, he busied himself with watching the house ghosts floating around. He overheard Sir Nicholas, the Gryffindor ghost, complaining to the Bloody Baron, the Slytherin ghost about someone called Peeves.

"I mean, that Poltergeist was throwing ink at the students when they came in," he complained. "You really should have another talk with him. He becomes quite uncontrollable." The Bloody Baron only grunted in response.

He tore his eyes away from the white, transparent figures and watched the staff table instead. Dumbledore was in deep conversation with McGonagall. Each time he nodded, his glasses slid down his nose a bit further and Dumbledore had to push them back up. At one time they even slid so far down, that they got tangled in his moustache. It took him two minutes to disentangle them.

Next to McGonagall sat a man with a turban. His eyes continually darted across the room and he seemed to jump at every loud noise in the room. Since there was a lot of noise, this was actually quite often. He was talking to a man with black, greasy hair and a hooked nose. When the man looked in Harry's direction, Harry's scar suddenly gave a jolt of pain. He clutched it in agony, but even before he could touch his head, the pain had faded and Harry wasn't all too sure whether he had imagined it or not. Still, he was startled by the look of loathing on the face of the greasy-haired professor. He turned to Percy.

"Percy, who is that professor sitting next to the one with the turban?" he asked.

"Who? Oh, that's professor Snape. He teaches Potions. You better watch out for that one. He's quite strict."

Fred and George, who had overheard the conversation, immediately piped in.

"Strict? He's bloody cruel to us Gryffindors."

"He's foul, evil, –"

"- prejudiced, loathsome, annoying, greasy-haired, –"

"- Slytherin-favouring, horribly unpleasant, –"

"- nasty, vile, obnoxious, revolting, –"

"- disgusting, ugly, repulsive, nauseating, –"

"- stomach-turning, hideous, insufferable, –"

"- unbearable, nasty, –"

"I've said that already, George!"

"Sorry, Fred. Hmm… I've run out of insults, but it still doesn't seem enough. Do you still know any, dear brother?"

"Sorry, George, that's it."

"Pity. Anyway, we hate him!" they finished together.

"I get it, Fred and George; he's not very nice, then?" Harry summarized grinning. He could hear Ginny laughing at the description too.

"You shouldn't talk about your _professor_ like that," Percy huffed.

"Aaah, lighten up, Perce. Just admit that you don't like the git either. Only the Slytherins do."

Percy glared at the twins, but refrained himself from answering. He just turned away and began a new conversation with a Hermione.

Finally when everyone was stuffed, the desserts had been eaten and the table had cleared itself again, Professor Dumbledore rose to address the students. He was smiling and his eyes were twinkling merrily.

"Welcome everyone for a new year at Hogwarts. Now that our hunger has been relieved, I'm afraid I have to keep you here for a few more moments before we can enjoy our well deserved rest. I have a few start-of-term notices to pass around. First of all, I would like you all to welcome our new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Quirrell."

He pointed at the man with the turban, who rose to accept a polite applause. It was weird to see a grown man cowering with every clap that was heard and especially Snape looked disgusted by the new teacher.

"Secondly, I would like to point out to our first-years that the forbidden forest is out of bounds for every student. I would like to remind some of our older students about that too," he said, his eyes darting to the Gryffindor table for a few seconds, no doubt looking for the twins. "Next, Mr. Filch, our caretaker, has asked me to remind you all that magic is forbidden in the corridors and a list of banned items can be reviewed at the door of his office for all who wish to check.

"I would finally like to bring your attention to the fact that the third-floor corridor on the right-hand side is out of bounds for all who do not wish to die a most painful death. That's all I have to say for now. I wish everyone a pleasant stay at Hogwarts and a good night to all!"

_A most painful death?_ _He can't be serious, can he? _he asked Ginny. _I mean, this is a school, right?_

_No idea, Harry. I think he's just stressing that the corridor is off limits,_ she answered, but he could hear the uncertainty in her voice.

"First-year Gryffindors! Follow me!" Percy shouted over the noise of the crowd. "First-year Gryffindors!"

The eight new Gryffindors fell in line behind the two fifth year prefects. Percy and his female counterpart led them through several corridors and up several staircases before halting in front of a portrait of a very corpulent woman in a silly pink dress.

"Good evening, young Gryffindors. Welcome to Hogwarts," the portrait spoke in a very high and somewhat annoying voice. Some of the Muggleborn students acted surprised at seeing a portrait move and talk, but Harry had already lived with a wizarding family for almost two months, so he knew that most portraits were charmed to act like their original.

"Caput Draconis," Percy spoke clearly. The portrait swung to the side to reveal a doorway. They passed through it and entered the Gryffindor Common Room. Percy turned around to address the first-years trying to look important, but failing somehow. "This is the Gryffindor Common Room. The girl's dormitories are on your left and the boy's dormitories are on your right. You will find your luggage has already been brought up there. If you have any questions, please address me or any of the other prefects and we will be happy to assist you. Good night." Without waiting any more, Percy turned around and left the first-years on their own in the common room.

_Sometimes I can't believe he's related to you,_ Harry commented. _And I definitely can't believe that he's related to the twins. _

_Yeah, he is a bit serious, isn't he? _Ginny answered.

_A bit?_

_Ok, a lot,_Ginny conceded.

"Hey, want to check out the dormitory?" Ron asked him.

Harry nodded his agreement and together they ascended the stairs. The room was brilliant. The walls were deep scarlet adorned with golden stripes. Five giant four poster beds occupied the room with their trunks already at the foot of the bed.

"COOL!" Seamus exclaimed and jumped theatrically on his bed. The others followed suit and after only five minutes of chatter everyone prepared to bed. The day had been long and everyone was tired, so it didn't take long for the dormitory to quiet down.

_Wow, this was some day, _Harry commented to Ginny once everything was silent.

_I know_._I hate being stuck here alone, though,_ she replied sadly.

_Yeah, I already miss you terribly. But maybe we'll dream together again_, Harry answered, trying to stay positive. _At least we can feel each other then in some way._

_I hope so,_she said. _Hey, can you hear things at my side anyway?_

_I don't know. I haven't tried. Is there anything to hear now?_

_No, not at the time._ _Let's test it. I'll go say goodnight to mum. See if you can hear her talk._

He concentrated on her end of the link between them and he clearly heard her mother reply.

_Yes, I heard, Gin, _Harry said happily. _This is great!_

_I know. Now we'll never be alone again! I love this!_

_Me__too, Gin, _Harry replied smiling inwardly. _I still miss you, but you somehow feel closer to me this way. Anyway, we should probably go to sleep. Sweet dreams!_

_If you're in it, I'm sure they will be, _she responded cheekily. _Good night!_


	4. Chapter 4: Meeting Snape

DISCLAIMER: I'm not making money with anything of yours, Rowling. I'm just borrowing your characters.

AN: Thanks to etj4eagle for the help and the ideas. Please take the time to leave a review!**  
**

**Chapter 4: Meeting Snape**

Harry woke up early the next morning feeling completely refreshed, having once again shared a dream with Ginny. In their dream he had shown, to Ginny's eager excitement, her all of Hogwarts that he could remember. He had recreated his entire approach to the castle from the lake with the boats, the long tunnel that they had taken to get to the entrance hall and then finally the Great Hall itself. After that, they had spent most of the night in a replica of the Gryffindor Common Room just talking and enjoying each others presence.

_Good morning, Gin, _Harry said, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

_Morning, 'Arry_, came her incoherent thoughts in return. Clearly she was not fully awake herself.

Excited with today being his first day of lessons, Harry jumped out of bed, quickly dressed and washed himself and dragged Ron down to breakfast. Walking down to the Great Hall, Harry was surprised by the many whispers that seemed to follow him around. Many of the other students stared and pointed at him when he passed them. He did his best to ignore everything, but he found it all terribly annoying.

When they had eaten, professor McGonagall passed out the schedules. Looking down done at his schedule Harry thought, _Today is Tuesday, so that means Transfiguration with the Hufflepuffs first, Gin. And then Potions with the Slytherins._

_Good luck, Harry, _Ginny replied, as Harry and Ron gathered their bags and left for class. _I'm working in the garden today. I have to degnome it again. It's going to take ages without any of my brothers here. At least I can follow your lessons to make it a bit more fun._

"Hey, mate," Ron suddenly said, looking intently at Harry. "You're awfully quiet today. Is something wrong?"

Harry startled. He had been so absorbed in his conversation with Ginny, that he had neglected his other friend; the one that was actually in the castle with him.

"No, just a bit nervous about lessons," Harry replied hastily. He vowed to be a bit more careful from now on. Talking to Ginny was really great, but he didn't want anybody else to get suspicious.

"I know what you mean. I hope it's not too difficult."

The two of them continued to chat like that as the headed off to Transfiguration, which turned out to be quite a journey. Not only was it on the other side of the castle and up a flight; Harry and Ron just kept making wrong turns everywhere. And then there were the moving staircases that were never correctly aligned for them. By the time the two of them finally did arrive, Harry was beginning to wonder if he was going to end up getting himself hopelessly lost in this massive castle before the end of the year. Entering the class room, they took the first two empty seats that they found and sat down just moments before their first class began.

Seeing that the last of her students were seated, McGonagall stood up from behind her desk and addressed the class. "Welcome to your first Transfiguration lesson," she greeted. Then after pausing for a moment, she continued, "Who can tell me what Transfiguration is?"

Not surprisingly it was Hermione's hand that shot in the air.

"Yes, Miss Granger?"

"Transfiguration is the branch of magic that studies the ways to change an object, animal or person, into something else."

"Excellent, Miss Granger. Five points to Gryffindor," she praised, causing Hermione to glow with pride and Ron to snort loudly, earning him a stern look from McGonagall. "Now, this branch of magic can be very dangerous if you don't pay attention. Therefore there will be no fooling around in this class. If you do, I will ask you to leave and you will have a hard time getting back in my class again." She glared around the class in warning, her eyes lingering a bit longer on Ron.

"Through your years here at Hogwarts, you will be required to master different types of transfigurations. In our first-year, we will work on transfiguring one object into another, mostly simple ones. In the second and third, we will progress to more complex objects and changing animals into objects and back. In the fourth year and the fifth, we will work on conjuring objects and changing one animal into another. The sixth and seventh year will be focused on human transfiguration and advanced conjuring. Students that excel in this class will have the opportunity to become Animagi in their last year.

"An Animagi is a person who can change into an animal and back at will, without the use of any spells. Like so," she said. She promptly changed into a tabby cat and back. This earned many gasps and excited squeaks from the students. McGonagall continued, "It is a very useful and fun experience, but I will only teach the best and brightest of this class. So everybody, work hard if you want to earn that chance."

It struck Harry as odd, hearing the stern and serious professor talking about fun. But he had to admit; after the demonstration of McGonagall, the prospect of becoming an Animagus really excited him. While he had always liked the idea of transforming into an animal ever since he had read about it in one of the books at the Burrow, seeing the actual act made it only more appealing to him. Daydreaming about what animal he wanted to be, Harry decided that he would really love to be one that could fly. He enjoyed flying on a broomstick, but somehow, it sounded much more exciting to fly without any aides.

_Yeah, _Ginny excitedly said as she caught Harry's thoughts, _I would like to be an Animagus too. Do you think we could try it early? I don't really want to wait until seventh year._

_It would be fun to be one and six years is a long time to wait, _Harry admitted_. If I'm good at Transfiguration, maybe we can try next year, when you're here too._

_Ok. I can wait that long. Now, pay attention! I can't hear your professor anymore._

"- introduction to the art of Transfiguration. Miss Brown, could you please pass out these matches? Make sure everyone has one." Lavender quickly did so and McGonagall continued. "You will attempt to change this match into a needle. Since the shape and size don't have to change a lot, this transfiguration will be fairly easy. Still, don't be disappointed if you don't succeed at the end of today's lesson. Most students need a lot of practice before they can even make a small change. But trust me when I say that it will get easier.

"The spell we're working with the coming weeks is '_Abe Inanimate'_. It is used for simple transfigurations between inanimate objects that are somewhat alike in shape and size. It doesn't require too much magical force, but it does require a fair amount of concentration. You have to imagine the change in your head before you say the incantation. The '_Abe Inanimate_' spell is one of a select few true transfiguration spells. They work on any object, within limits of course, and can have any results. The downside to this kind of Transfiguration is that it takes a lot of concentration to do it.

"This first year is all about building your mental strength, which is why we are working with this spell in particular. In the later years I will teach you certain shortcuts; spells that require a lot less concentration to make it work. However, these only work for specific types of changes. By example, the spell '_Verretio'_transfigures an object to a glass, but it can only be used to do just that."

McGonagall walked to her desk and put one of the matches in front of her. "Everybody concentrate on how a needle looks. Imagine in your mind the match changing into a needle. If you have the picture in your mind, point your wand and say the incantation. Watch closely."

She pointed her wand and clearly said the incantation and instantly her match changed to a gleaming, sharp, silver needle.

"Let me see how you do. Begin!"

Harry concentrated on how a needle would look. He imagined it long and sharp, with a nice loop at one end for where the thread would go through. Picturing it in his mind he pointed his wand and spoke the incantation. The match glowed a faint blue and immediately changed into a needle, but it wasn't as sharp as Harry would have wanted it and it was still brown.

_Damn, this thing is worthless, _Harry said disappointed, taking the half match, half needle in his hands. In the meanwhile he failed to notice that his first try was a lot better than the rest of the class. None of the others had succeeded in making even the slightest change to their match.

_Relax, Harry. Concentrate and try again! You can do it, _Ginny encouraged.

Trying again, Harry once more pictured the needle in his head. He concentrated on its texture, smooth gleaming silver-coloured steel. He concentrated on the shape, long and slender and its point very sharp. Then with Ginny's belief in the back of his mind, he waved his wand and said "_Abe Inanimate_". This time the spell caused the half match, half needle to glow a bright blue and instantly it changed into a full needle, an exact copy of its mental image.

_I did it, Ginny! _Harry cried out jubilantly in his head.

_Very good, Harry! I knew you could do it,_ Ginny congratulated.

As Ginny was congratulating Harry, McGonagall who was checking on the progress of her students stopped by Harry's desk. Seeing the perfect needle in front of Harry left her speechless for a moment. Recovering, McGonagall said "Very good, Mr. Potter. I never had a student who mastered this so fast. Ten points to Gryffindor."

Hearing McGonagall's praise, Hermione looked over at Harry with something ranging between respect and jealousy, while Ron just looked impressed. For the remainder of the class, Professor McGonagall gave him progressively more difficult things to transfigure. Each time Harry was able to perform completed perfect transfiguration after no more than two or three tries. At the end of the hour, he had transfigured twelve different things with very little or no effort, while the others were still struggling with their matches.

"Mr. Potter. Can you stay behind for a moment? It won't take long," McGonagall called out, as Harry made to leave the classroom.

Saying his goodbyes to Ron, Harry walked over to the professor. She leaned over the desk she was sitting behind and folded her hands thoughtfully. "Mr. Potter. Have you done this before?" she asked, looking intently at the boy in front of her.

"No, ma'am. This is the first time I've ever done any kind of spell," Harry answered truthfully.

"Really?" McGonagall replied sceptically. It was obvious she didn't really believe him, but Harry didn't press it. He knew he wasn't lying. "It seems you are a natural at this, then. Amazing work today, Potter. Make sure you keep it up. Now hurry along to your next class."

"Thank you, professor," he said politely before hurrying out of the room and sprinting down the corridors to make it in time for Potions. It was a double period of the subject and Harry really didn't know what to expect. When reading in his Potions book this summer, he got intrigued by the many possibilities of creating potions. He had been looking forward to these lessons, but now that he had seen who taught the class, his enthusiasm had faltered a bit. Snape didn't seem like a good teacher at all.

Arriving at the dungeon where Potions was taught a bit out of breath, but apparently just in time, Harry entered right behind the last student. Or at least that was what Harry thought, but apparently Snape thought otherwise.

Glaring at Harry with his cold, black eyes and an evil grin on his face promising trouble, the Potion Master sneered, "Mr. Potter! How nice of you to brighten my class with your presence," as Harry walked in. Then moving in front of Harry, effectively stopping him from reaching a seat, Snape continued in a loud carrying voice. "It is always great to have a celebrity around, you know. However, you are late for class and, celebrity or not, that will not be tolerated here. Ten points from Gryffindor for your tardiness."

Hearing a good number of students snigger at his loss of points, Harry looked around to see who was sniggering at him. Seeing the silver and green markings on half of the robes, Harry groaned as he remembered that he was having this class together with the Slytherins. Malfoy and some of the others were laughing and pointing at him. Snape didn't saw fit to straighten them out, though.

Harry was furious at Snape for the unfair treatment. He was boiling inside and had a hard time suppressing his fury. _I can't believe this, Gin,_ he practically screamed inside his head. _Snape just took ten points of me just for entering the class as the last student. I did nothing wrong!_

Knowing how Snape's comments had effected Harry, Ginny said in a soothing voice, _I heard, Harry. Try to stay calm. He's just goading you. Don't let him get to you._

Taking a deep breath and relaxing a bit, Harry thought back, _Thanks, Ginny._

"I'm sorry I'm late, sir," Harry said as calmly and politely as he could muster. "Professor McGonagall wanted to talk to me about something after class, which is why I am a little late. It won't happen again."

"Quiet, Potter! I didn't ask you to speak!" Snape spat. "Sit down and shut it!" Then he turned away from Harry, swishing his long, black robes, and addressed the entire class while Harry hurried to sit next to Ron. "You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making," he said in a cold voice that was barely more than a whisper, but everyone caught every word anyway. Nobody dared to make a sound while Snape was speaking. "You won't need your wand in this class, so keep it pocketed if you know what's good for you. This is a very fine art and a difficult branch of magic and few appreciate the beauty of a simmering cauldron and the power of the delicate liquids I will teach you to brew. Only a few of you will have the talent to succeed in this class, while others — " At this point he looked straight at Harry "— will most likely … fail."

Harry swallowed and turned his eyes away. _I think he hates me,_ he commented to Ginny. _He looks at me like my Uncle used to. I don't like him._

_Don't worry, Harry. He won't hurt you with all those people around. I promise._

Harry effectively calmed down by her words, mentally sighed, _This will be a hard class_.

_This will be easy for you. We already read those three Potion books together. I'm sure that between the two of us, this class will be a piece of cake. Just don't let him get to you._

"Mr. Potter! Five points from Gryffindor for not paying attention!" Snape said suddenly, causing Harry to look up with a snap into the eyes of the professor. They were as black as Hagrid's but held none of the warmth. They were cold and piercing and when their eyes met, Harry felt something pushing at the edge of his mind. It was a soft tingling sensation that gradually increased in force. It reminded him of the feeling he had when the Sorting Hat was looking deeper in his mind, but it was much more unpleasant.

_There's something in my head,_ he screamed to Ginny as he hid his head in his hands in a subconscious effort to escaping the probing and, surprisingly to him, the moment he did so the feeling of fingers in his mind immediately disappeared.

"Potter! Look at me when I'm talking to you!" Snape said warningly. Reluctantly Harry removed his hands and looked back in Snape's cold eyes. In doing so the tingling in Harry's brain returned in full force, causing him to wince. The piercing look of his professor was too much for him and Harry averted his eyes once again. The tingling lessened, but it didn't disappear completely.

_Do you think…, _Harry said slowly to Ginny, beginning to connect the dots. Testing his half formed thought, he looked back at Snape for a second and felt the increase again. Then moving onto the next part, he looked down again and focused his gaze on his hands and was rewarded with the tingling stopping completely. Now with a possible idea of what was happening, a disgusted Harry said to Ginny, _I think Snape was trying to read my mind!_ The idea of that horrible man picking through his brain caused shivers to run down his spine. _It stopped when I wasn't looking in his eyes anymore. I think he needs eye contact to do it._

Noticing Harry attempts to avert his gaze, Snape softly goaded Harry by saying, "Our new celebrity doesn't seem to be interested in this class. Perhaps he believes he is above instruction." He paused for a moment, trying to catch Harry's eye, but the latter kept staring pointedly at his hands.

"Tell me, Potter," Snape said, saying the name with as much contempt as he could muster, "What would you get if you mixed powdered root of Asphodel to an infusion of Wormwood?"

_I know that!_Ginny said excitedly. _A powerful sleeping potion called the Draught of the Living Death._

"The Draught of the Living Death, sir," Harry answered in barely a whisper. "It's a powerful sleeping potion."

Snape looked stunned for a moment, but quickly fired a new question. "Where would you look if I told you to find me a Bezoar?"

Harry knew this himself, having read it in one of the potion books this summer, and tried to answer the question without sounding smug. "It's a stone taken from the stomach of goat, sir. It will save you from most poisons."

Again, Snape looked incredulously at the boy in front of him. Frustrated that he wasn't making Potter look like a fool, he tried one final question. "What is the difference between Monkshood and Wolfsbane, Potter?"

_They are the same! It's a plant. We have it in our garden._

"They are the same." Harry said and then on Ginny's prompting he added "It is also called Aconite." By this point, Harry had given up on trying not to sound smug and the boastfulness was apparent in his response, giving Snape something to use.

"Another ten points from Gryffindor for your boasting!" Snape said viciously. In response, the Gryffindors glared at the professor and even Hermione was red with indignation.

Any hope that Harry might have had that the rest of the Potions class might have gone better quickly died with the class becoming a horrific experience. They were brewing a simple colour-changing potion. It was easy enough to do, but the actions of their professor made it hard for them to complete successfully. Snape's insults of Harry continued through the class and the rest of Gryffindors were treated with pure malice. However, if you were a Slytherin things were different, as Malfoy and his friends were constantly talking and playing around and Snape never once commented on them.

Only a few of the Slytherins did not join their housemates in the jesting. One of them, a dark-skinned boy, was actually looking at the others in disgust. Harry recognised him as Blaise Zabini. The only reason Harry remembered his name was because he was the last to be sorted yesterday. Every once in a while Malfoy would throw the boy a dark look, before turning back to his friends. Harry made a mental note about that. It was good to know not all the Slytherins liked Malfoy.

When Snape finally dismissed the class, Harry hurried out so that he could vent his frustrations. _He took twenty-five points from me for no reason at all! _Harry complained angrily to Ginny's sympathetic ear, as he speed-walked to the Great Hall in an attempt to rid his body of the built up tension. _What did I ever do to him?_

_I don't know, Harry. But there's something more pressing to worry about now. I'm afraid that Snape will find out about our connection. I don't want that. We've got to find a way to keep him out of our head,_ she said. _Ah, I mean your head. Sorry._

Harry chuckled at that. _I guess you're right. It is our head now. _His mental voice turned serious again. _How do we do it, though? _

Ginny was thoughtful for a few seconds. _No idea, Harry. But we'll find a way._

_Thank goodness I don't have Potions again until next week._

"Wait, Harry!" called out a heavily breathing Ron, who had been forced to hurry after his rapidly departing brother. "Slow down!"

Hearing Ron's request, Harry slowed his pace just enough so that Ron could more easily keep up. "Sorry, Ron. I was just a bit frustrated."

"I can believe that," the redhead replied frowning. "He really seems to hate you, doesn't he?"

By this time the two of them had arrived at the Great Hall. Taking a seat at the lunch table they began to load food on their plate. "I noticed," Harry answered softly. "I don't know why, though. Today's the first day I've ever spoken to him."

As Harry spoke, the other first-year Gryffindors began to arrive at the table and likewise they all began complaining about the Potions Master. It warmed Harry that he was not alone to deal with this. They all found Snape's attitude towards Harry nothing short of cruel.

That afternoon, the Gryffindor first-years had their first Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson. This was one subject that Harry was really looked forward to. The books on that subject had talked about all sorts of cool things like duelling and spell-casting and such and it sounded very interesting. Unfortunately, class was nothing like the books; it was a big disappointment.

The first thing Harry had noticed upon entering the classroom had been a distinct odour. It smelled somewhat like garlic, but Harry was convinced that it was something else. There were stories circulating about Quirrel having some trouble with Vampires and that as a consequence the turban that he wore was stuffed with garlic. Of course, nobody really believed that. They did, though, all think that he was paranoid.

Professor Quirrel had spent the first fifteen minutes talking about his turban. It was supposedly a gift from an African prince for getting rid of a troublesome Zombie, but Harry doubted the truthfulness of that story. Quirrel didn't look like he could handle that kind of stress; he practically jumped at his own shadow. Then after that spiel by Quirrel they had spent the rest of the lesson reading from their text books. They never even got to take out their wands! It didn't seem like they would ever learn how to cast a spell in this class. Harry and Ron vowed to practice the casting by themselves. With people like Malfoy running around at Hogwarts, both felt that it was necessary to know a bit about defence.

Finally, after a very long lesson — it was only an hour, but it felt to Harry like three — they went to the study room. All first-years had to gather there for a mandatory hour of quiet studying. Harry didn't feel like studying, so he pretended to read and spent the time talking to Ginny. That caused him sometimes to smile or blush for no obvious reason, to the others anyway, but he was getting better at hiding his reactions. After just chatting, Harry and Ginny spent their time brainstorming ways to block Snape's mind reading abilities, but the only thing they could come up with was wearing sunglasses in class, but somehow they didn't think Snape would allow that. They were no closer to a solution when the hour ended and the first-years left the room and returned to their common rooms.

Harry and Ron had an hour of free time left until dinner, which they spent playing chess. Harry was once again trounced every game. As they were playing, Harry noticed Fred and George whispering excitedly in the corner of the common room. Every once in the while, they were throwing suspicious looks around the room. Having lived with them for the two past months, Harry had learned to be careful when they acted like that. It usually meant they were up to something. Luckily Harry hadn't found himself at the end of their pranks too much, since most of them were directed at Percy and Ron. He wondered who the victim would be this time.

When the twins walked past Harry and Ron on their way out of the common room, Harry motioned to Ron and they rose from their seats, following the twins. They quickly caught up and approached them. "Hey, Fred and George. What are you two up to?" Harry asked softly, matching their stride.

"We? Up to something?" Fred said, plastering an innocent look on his face. "The mere insinuation is insulting."

"Indeed, dear brother and adoptive brother. We would never do anything against the rules of this fine school. Especially not pranking," George quipped in, throwing the two younger boys a wink.

"That's right. And certainly not against certain annoying Slytherins."

"We wouldn't even dare to do something like that."

"So we don't have any reason to advice you to keep an eye on the Slytherin table tonight."

"Enjoy your dinner, young ones! This is where we leave you. We have one small stop to make before we can make it to dinner. Cheerio!"

Before either Ron or Harry could, the twins had vanished behind a tapestry. The two friends smiled at each other, curious about what the twins had planned. For this reason they hurried down to the Great Hall when it was time for dinner.

Sitting down at the table, Harry saw that they were having spaghetti. Apparently Ron had never eaten this before, because he had a lot of trouble handling the long noodles. The result was that within minutes of attempting to eat his dinner, the tomato sauce was found everywhere on the redhead, much to the irritation of Hermione. She looked on in disgust at his table manners.

As they ate, Harry saw the twins, who were now sitting a few seats away, throw various suspicious glances at the Slytherin table. They hid it well, but Harry having been tipped off quickly recognized their expectant gaze. Looking more closely at exactly who the twins were watching, Harry saw that their attention was directed at one of the larger boys at the Slytherin table. Harry recognised him. He was the captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team. His name was Marcus … something; Harry couldn't remember his full name.

Suddenly there was a large popping noise, followed by cries of indignation, which were themselves followed by a steadily growing roar of laughter. Looking over at the Slytherin table and seeing the cause of the ruckus, Harry promptly joined in with laugher. Five of the Slytherins, including the Marcus guy, had sprouted donkey ears with matching tails. They looked angry at being humiliated and ran out of the Great Hall as fast as they could, their eyes directed at their feet.

"It's everyone that was on the Slytherin Quidditch team last year that got pranked," Harry heard one of the older Gryffindors say between bouts of laughter.

The twins were throwing each other knowing looks, but they twisted their face in a mask of innocence, when Snape approached the two. Harry strained his ears to hear the resulting conversation.

"Good evening, professor Snape. How are you today, sir?" Fred said smiling.

"You two wouldn't happen to know who is responsible for this childish — prank?" Snape asked with his typical scowl in place. He stared intently at the twins who met his gaze without blinking.

"Of course not, sir. We have nothing to do with that amateurish prank," George replied with a straight face.

"I agree, sir. This transfiguration thingy is just not our style. You know we are all flash and bang," Fred said smiling innocently.

"Indeed. We like explosions. The bigger the better. Certainly you remember that, sir."

Snape eyes narrowed at that comment. He looked intently at the twins, his eyes taking on that piercing quality that Harry recognised from earlier that day. He was sure that Snape was trying to read the twins' mind like he had tried with him. After a minute or so, the professor turned around looking confused. He must have been certain he would find that they did it while snooping around in their minds. Apparently, they had a way to block the mind-reading attempts, since the twins got away with it and Harry was certain they had done it. After all, they had hinted rather heavily that something would happen.

After dinner, Harry retreated to the common room with a book. While pretending to read his copy of 'The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection', he related the events of the evening and his suspicions to Ginny.

_Do you really think the twins know how to defend their minds against Snape?_ he said after finishing his story. Harry couldn't keep the hopeful tone out of his voice.

_You could ask, _Ginny said. She added thoughtfully, _It sounds like something they would know._

_What do I say, though? They are going to ask why I want to know that._

Ginny was silent for a few seconds. _I know! _She suddenly said. _This is what you do…_

A few minutes later, Harry was walking to the corner of the common room where Fred and George were whispering to each other, no doubt already planning their next act of mischief. Fred hurriedly stuffed a piece of parchment in his pocket when he saw Harry approaching. The latter plopped down in a seat next to the twins.

"Congratulations, guys," Harry said smiling, his face sporting a reverent look. "That prank was hilarious!"

"We had nothing to do with that excellent bit of mischief," Fred said, holding up his hand, but his smile told otherwise.

"But we gladly accept your congratulations for the prank we didn't do," George added with a wink.

"Well, if you found out who did do it, offer them my respect. It was a masterful prank," Harry said grinning.

"We'll be sure to do that, little adoptive brother. I can honestly say they will appreciate your support in their marvellous endeavours."

"I have one question, though," Harry said, moving his head a bit closer. "What did you mean when you said that Snape knew you two liked explosions?"

"Oh, that?" George asked smiling. "We once blew up our cauldron full of swelling solution."

"Totally accidental of course," Fred shrugged innocently.

"He got hit in the face with a blob and his already big nose grew to three times its size before he could shrink it again. We thought it was pretty funny, but somehow he didn't agree with us."

"We have no idea why not, though."

"Gave us two weeks of detention for that."

"Worth every second of it," Fred concluded, a satisfied look on his face.

"I can believe that," Harry replied with a smile. His face turned serious again when he remembered the reason why he was sitting here with the twins. He leaned a bit closer to the two of them and whispered, "I could use your help with a little project of my own."

The twins looked at each other surprised and turned their attention to the boy in front of them.

"You have our attention, my dearest adoptive brother," Fred responded smiling slightly. "What's up?"

"I'm your_only_adoptive brother," Harry noted dryly.

"Why yes, well noticed, little Harry. You get smarter by the day."

Shrugging off their teasing, Harry went back to business. "Well, I'm sure you heard about my first lesson with Snape." At their nods, he continued. "He was just a teeny bit unfair to me and I want to get back at him," Harry whispered conspiratorially.

"Pranking, you mean?" George asked, his eyes gaining a familiar glint. Harry nodded his confirmation.

"A most worthy endeavour, I must say," Fred added, looking proudly at the young Gryffindor. "How can we help you achieve your revenge?"

"Well, I'm pretty sure that Snape can read minds and -," Harry said.

"You found out about that, did you?" George interrupted.

"So it is true, then?" Harry asked. Their silent nods confirmed it and Harry continued. "Now, I don't want to get caught pranking him, which is why I am here. I figured that two notorious pranksters like yourselves would know how to keep the greasy git out of your heads."

Harry waited expectantly while the two brothers conversed with a couple of looks. Finally they nodded to each other and turned back to Harry.

"A very fine deduction, young Harry," Fred said softly.

"You are quite correct. We do know how to keep _the greasy git_ out of our heads."

"We didn't like the enormous amount of Howlers our dear mother kept sending us each time Snape caught us doing a prank. "

"Those are deadly for the ears, I tell you."

"So, at the end of last year we spent our last days searching the library."

"A terrible way to spent free days, I might add."

"But our efforts were not in vain."

"Indeed not, brother of mine."

"We found the solution and spent a long time perfecting the technique."

"Took us nearly the entire holidays, but if it keeps our eardrums intact it will be well worth the effort."

"What you want to learn is —"

"- Occlumency," they both concluded.

"Occlumency?" Harry repeated.

"Yep. That is the answer to your question."

"Since you are going to use it for a very admirable cause, we will be glad to assist you in any way possible."

Fred leaned a little bit closer, his voice dropping another few decibels. "There's a book in the Restricted Section in the library called 'The Power of the Mind: Legilimency and Occlumency Explained' which will tell you everything you need to know."

"We would be most happy to retrieve the book for you, if you want us too."

"Would you? That would be so great, guys," Harry said eagerly.

_I told you those two would do anything for a prank, _Ginny smiled in his head.

"Thanks, Fred and George," Harry said sincerely, while standing up from his seat.

"No, my dearest adoptive brother, we thank you for continuing our most noble tradition of pranking," Fred replied solemnly, holding out his right hand for Harry to shake.

"Indeed. As long as you're _up to no good_, you are ok in our book," George added, holding out his left.

Harry smiled broadly while shaking their hands with both of his own.

* * *

The next day turned out to be much better than the previous one. The day began with a double period of Charms. Professor Flitwick was a small old man with a lot of bushy silver hair. He had stood on a stack of books, so he would be able to look over his desk. The professor seemed extremely excited about everything that happened around him. He didn't look like much, but he quickly earned class's respect when he showed them some of the things they would learn. His skill with a wand was amazing. He levitated three of the desks the students used at the same time with a simple flick of his wand, students included.

He told his class that they would learn how to levitate things around Halloween if everyone progressed fast enough. That said, he began teaching the class a simple charm. The 'lumos charm' was used to create a light at the tip of your wand so it could be used just like a Muggle flashlight. It was an easy charm and everyone mastered it without any problems. Flitwick taught them next how to increase and decrease the amount of light it gave. That was a little harder and Harry struggled a bit to control it. One time, his wand-light flared up way too brightly for a few seconds, causing Ron to see spots for almost twenty minutes. At the end of class, Harry's control was decent enough to escape homework. Neville was not so lucky. His wand only gave a weak amount of light and no matter what he tried he couldn't get it to brighten.

After Charms, came History of Magic. The only exciting thing that happened there was professor Binns floating in through the blackboard. That caused everyone to jump two feet in their seats. Then without any form of introduction, the ghost started lecturing on the first rebellion of the Goblins back in the year 732. Harry made a valiant effort to keep concentrating on the subject, but everyone — except for Hermione, soon let their minds drifting to happier things.

That afternoon the Gryffindor first-years had their first (official) flying lesson, a lesson that was held together with the Slytherins. As they walked onto the Quidditch pitch, Harry looked around in amazement. The pitch was enormous! Three large golden poles with hoops were standing at each side of the grass-covered field. The pitch was surrounded by high stands, filled with hundreds of seats. Harry could only imagine what it would be like to see a real Quidditch game here. He was already looking forward to the first match.

"Everyone, stand next to your broom on the left hand side, hold your right hand over the broom and say 'UP'!" instructed Madam Hooch in much the same way the twins had taught Harry, Ron and Ginny that summer. Neville, who was standing next to Harry, was looking a bit green. Harry suspected that he had never ridden a broom before, which surprised Harry considering the boy grew up in a wizarding family.

"Hey, Neville. Relax, mate. You'll do fine," Harry whispered to his shy friend. Neville nodded and calmed down a bit.

Harry and Ron, with confidence and experience form their training during the summer, were among the few who managed to activate their brooms on their first try. The only others were Malfoy and Zabini. Harry was surprised to see that Malfoy was still throwing Zabini angry glares. Apparently there was no friendship spared between the two Slytherins.

"Do you know what Zabini did to offend Malfoy?" Harry asked Ron curiously.

"I don't care. They're all a bunch of stinkin' Slytherins anyway," Ron answered with a shrug.

"Ron, being a Slytherin is not so bad. Some of the people in there might not be so … pleasant, but others might be decent. Give them the benefit of the doubt until you know them. They're not all called Malfoy," Harry responded. _Damn, I sound like Hermione!_

_Yeah, but she's right though, _Ginny answered, obviously listening in on the conversation.

"Keep on dreaming, mate. The day I see a good Slytherin, I'll eat my shorts."

"Do you know that I could have been in Slytherin if I wanted to? The Sorting Hat said I could choose whatever house I wanted, because I had the qualities to do well in all of the houses. I only chose Gryffindor, because I suspected you would be in it."

Ron looked funny at Harry for a few moments, before turning away.

_What on earth possessed me to tell him that? _Harry fumed in his head. _He'll never speak to me again!_

_Don't worry about it. He'll come around. He'll sulk for a day or two and then he'll pretend nothing has happened,_ Ginny reassured._You won't be able to convince him that there are good Slytherins until you show him one, though._

In the meantime, everyone had finally managed to active their brooms and were now holding them in their hands.

"Everybody, mount your brooms!" Madam Hooch shouted over the talking crowd. The class quickly complied, anxious to begin the real flying. "Hold your broom tightly and kick off lightly to hover."

Harry and Ron did so, just as they had at the Burrow last year. Neville succeeded too, even though it was a bit shaky. He almost rose too high, but he managed to control his broom before that happened. The boy smiled broadly at his success.

"Oy! Scarhead! What are you doing down there? Are you afraid of heights?" Malfoy shouted. He was flying over the other students, way higher than he was supposed to be.

"MR. MALFOY! GET DOWN HERE IMMEDIATELY!" Madam Hooch shouted at the blonde boy. Malfoy did so and landed sneering in front of the instructor.

"Ten points from Slytherin for disregarding instructions! You are to report to your head of house immediately. If I see this sort of behaviour again next lesson, don't expect to be allowed back. Now go!"

Hearing his punishment, Malfoy's sneer disappeared immediately and was replaced by an angry scowl. Sulking and muttering insults he left the pitch.

"Ha, that will teach him," Harry laughed together with the other Gryffindors. He could see that Blaise was amused too. From the corner of his eye, Harry could see that Ron was looking at the boy too. Maybe Harry got more through to him than he thought.

_I hope so,_Ginny sighed. _He can be quite stubborn, you know._

"See, Ron, not everybody in Slytherin likes Malfoy," Harry whispered, pointing discreetly at Zabini.

"But he's a Slytherin!" Ron responded stubbornly, but he didn't sound as convinced anymore. "You can't trust a Slytherin."

"I'm not saying you should like him immediately. But I'm also saying you shouldn't dislike him just because he's in Slytherin. Some of them might be ok."

The next forty minutes they spent on easy flying exercises. It was all too simple for Harry and Ron.

Towards the end of the lesson, Madam Hooch called everybody to the ground and said, "The rest of the afternoon you can fly freely across the pitch. Be careful and only do what you know you can do. Don't try any spectacular moves unless you're sure you can do them. Dismissed!"

Harry whooped inwardly with joy. No more slow flying! He mounted his broom quickly and shot of in the air at full speed. The old school broom was sputtering with the effort, but Harry didn't held back. He made a large turn around the pitch followed by a near vertical ascension. He levelled out at a height of one hundred and twenty feet to enjoy the view for a moment. The lake in the distance glistened in the late summer sun. The grounds lay magnificently around the huge castle. For a moment Harry thought he saw a unicorn running in the forbidden forest, but when he looked more intently, it was gone.

He set it from his mind and went back to his flying. He went into a steep dive at top speed. When he had almost reached the ground, he levelled out, skimmed the grass with his feet and pulled back up. He turned sharply, performed a perfect roll followed by an impressive looping. This was amazing! If only he was allowed a broom at Hogwarts.

Madam Hooch whistled and all the students gathered on the pitch again.

"Deposit your brooms in the broom shed. Class dismissed."

"Oy, Potter!" Zabini called out, catching up with Ron and Harry. "That was some amazing flying you did out there! Where did you learn that? I thought you lived with Muggles?"

"I did, but not anymore," Harry answered. He pointed at his red-haired friend. "Ron's brothers taught me how to fly this summer."

"Really? You only learned to fly this summer?"

"Yeah," Harry smiled. "What's going on with you and Malfoy anyway? I couldn't help but notice the less than friendly glares between the two of you."

Zabini scowled. "The git wanted me to join his little 'gang'. He wanted me to follow him around just like his two buffoons Crabbe and Goyle. Like I have nothing better to do. He threatened me when I refused."

"He did that, did he? Well, I don't think you'll need it, but if you ever do need our help to humiliate the arrogant idiot, just let me know. I'll be happy to assist."

"Thanks, but I can handle him. You're alright, Potter." He held out his hand.

"So are you … Blaise," Harry answered, returning the handshake. "And call me Harry, please."

"Sure, Harry. See you around!"

Ron looked like he was going to say anything, but he closed his mouth and just turned around and walked to the broom shed. Harry quickly ran after him, but chose not to comment on what just happened. After depositing their brooms, Harry and Ron left to have some dinner.

* * *

After dinner, Harry dragged the twins into the corner they had occupied yesterday. When they sat down, Harry whispered, "Do you have that book on Occlumancy yet?" 

The twins smiled broadly. "Yes, we do. We got it out of the library as soon as we could, as promised, which means about an hour after you asked," George said, reaching in his bag.

"How did you manage that?" Harry asked flabbergasted. When he spoke to them yesterday, it was already after curfew. And Harry knew that the teachers and prefects patrolled the corridors at least until midnight.

"Trade secret, dear Harry. Maybe we'll let you in on that one when you're a bit older."

_I told you,_Ginny smiled in his head. _Those two will do __**anything**__ for a good prank. You know what this means, right? We - er - you are going to have to prank Snape for real. They will never let you off the hook if you don't._

_I can live with that,_ Harry replied grinning inwardly.

"Here you go, Harry," George said, thrusting a thick book in Harry's hands. "Keep it as long as you want. But before you start, we would like to offer you a bit of advice. The book speaks about organising your mind. We deducted after a serious bit of research —"

"- you mean the possibility just suddenly popped into your head," Fred interjected.

"Let me speak, Fred. You'll confuse the little boy."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Is there a point to this or do you just want to keep insulting me?"

"What?" George said innocently. "But you _are_little. How can it be an insult if we are telling the truth?"

"Whatever," Harry replied shrugging. "Now, what did you deduct?"

"We deducted that if you only organise certain thoughts and memories, that it is possible to fool the Legilimens, Snape in our case, into believing you can't do Occlumency. Only the organised memories will be hidden and Snape will be none the wiser."

"Really?"

"Yes, really," Fred grinned. "You saw it at dinner, didn't you?"

"Another benefit to that technique is that you can master it a lot faster. The book says that it takes almost half a year to master if you want to protect your entire mind. But we managed to keep our pranks hidden from the git after only two months of practice," George said proudly.

_Two months? But you have Snape again next Monday!_ a slightly panicked Ginny said.

"Eh, guys. If it takes two months, how will I keep all this from Snape in the next few weeks?" Harry asked, relaying Ginny's concerns. "I mean, if he reads my mind during the next lesson on Monday, he can find out about me learning Occlumency, you two being Occlumens _and_the pranks before I even have a chance to master it."

"He's got a point, dearest brother," Fred said with a frown.

"We didn't think of that. I guess we got a bit distracted in the prospect of a good prank on Snape," agreed George, who was turning a bit green at how bad things could get.

Fred sighed deeply. "You'll just have to make sure to avoid his eyes until you master it and hope for the best," he said.

Harry groaned. "I'll try. I hope it works."

_Me too,_Ginny said. _I really don't want him knowing about us._

"Well, I guess I have some reading to do," Harry said, holding the book up. "Thanks a lot guys. I owe you one."

"Just get Snape good and we'll be happy," Fred said smiling. "Good luck!"

Taking the book, Harry retreated to his dormitory under the pretence of wanting to take a nap before his Astronomy lesson at eleven o'clock. Hidden behind the hangings of his four poster bed, he was skimming through the book under the light of his wand. The new charm they had learned from Flitwick today already came in handy.

_So, how do we do this Occlumency? _Ginny asked him after a while.

_It seems pretty hard,_ Harry replied after reading the introduction chapter. _We have to do all sorts of meditation exercises to improve our concentration, to control our emotions and to clear our mind, whatever that means, _Harry said. _We have to organise our memories and then we have to build defences. It's all pretty well explained, but it will take a lot of time._

_Well, let's get started on it. _

_Do you think we could do it while we sleep? In our dreams, I mean._

_I would think so. It's just mind-work, right? _Ginny asked and without waiting for an answer she continued. _Just read everything that it says about those meditation exercises to me. We will try some of them now. If we dream, we can continue our work. If we don't, we'll have to find a way to make time during the day._

Harry readily agreed and they set their plan in motion. After reading the chapters on meditation, Harry and Ginny started on a few of the exercises. They had decided to do them both at the same time, so that the one wouldn't disturb the other with random thoughts. For an hour and a half they did mind clearing exercises and concentration enhancing meditations. So focused they were Harry almost missed his Astronomy lesson, but luckily Ron remembered to warn him when it was time to leave.

That lesson, on top of the Astronomy tower, turned out to be nothing more than a simple introduction on how to use the equipment and after only half an hour they were sent to their beds. By the time Harry reached the dormitory he was quite exhausted from all the excitement over the past few days as such he drifted to sleep in no time.

* * *

"So, what do we have now?" Ron asked as they exited greenhouse one. They just had Herbology and were now returning to the castle. Just like in Astronomy yesterday, this class too was just a simple introduction. Professor Sprout didn't want anyone to work on her precious plants without a thorough knowledge of all the tools and what to use them for.

"A double period of Transfiguration," a familiar female voice said behind them.

"Hi, Hermione," Harry greeted. "How did you like the lessons so far?"

"I think everything's absolutely fascinating," she replied smiling. Ron rolled his eyes behind her back, but Harry ignored him. "The only thing I find hard so far is Transfiguration. I've tried all yesterday evening but I can't even make a small change to my match. How did you do it? It looked so easy when you did it." Hermione looked a bit frustrated when she mentioned her lack of success.

"I don't know," Harry shrugged, not really knowing how to respond. It was easy for him, but actually saying that might discourage the girl even further. He finally settled for a neutral bit of encouragement. "I'm sure you'll get it today, though."

Hermione nodded but she didn't look convinced. They continued their road in silence.

Transfiguration was still way too easy for Harry. The others were still struggling with their matches, while Harry was changing his object from one thing to another without any troubles.

"How do you do that?" asked an exasperated Hermione after he transfigured a knife into a spoon. "I can't even change this match into a needle!"

"Eh, like I said earlier, I don't really know. I just concentrate really hard on what it's supposed to become and I say the incantation."

"But I do that and it only gets a little silver," she said desperately. She looked close to tears by now.

"Ok, Hermione. I'll help you a bit," Harry offered. _How do I help her with this?_

_Just do the same thing I did, when you had to do it, _Ginny suggested.

Harry grinned mentally. _You mean talk in her head?_

_No, silly. Just make sure she believes she can do it._

"Right. Close your eyes and take a deep breath," he said, remembering the first time he tried. "First, imagine the needle in your head. Concentrate on its shining silver colour, its sharp point and the small loop at the end. See the object in your mind. Every little detail of it. Do you see it?"

"Yes," she said slowly, her eyes closed in concentration.

"Now, believe that you can change the match into the needle you pictured in your head. Don't just say the incantation. Say it and believe it will change. I know you can do it. Ready?"

"Yes," she said again.

"Now, say the incantation: _Abe Inanimate_."

"_Abe Inanimate_!" she almost screamed and indeed the match changed into a needle immediately. "I DID IT! I DID IT!" she screamed in jubilation, jumping up and down in her seat.

"Congratulations, Hermione. The other objects are the same way. Here, try to change this quill into a ruler."

It took her about five tries, but then it changed too.

"Wow, this is getting easier. Thank you, Harry."

"Don't mention it."

At the end of the lesson was over, professor McGonagall called him over. "Mr. Potter. Can you stay behind for a moment?"

_Again, _Harry groaned silently and then answered out loud, "Sure, professor."

The other students slowly filed out, while Harry approached McGonagall's desk. "I saw how you helped Miss Granger to achieve her Transfiguration," the professor said, a rare smile on her face. "That was very nice of you." Harry just nodded in acknowledgment. "It seems you have great potential in this area of magic. You have mastered a spell in just a few tries that others your age take several lessons to master. That is a unique achievement. From what I've seen so far, it seems like you will master any other similar spells just as quick. Normally we spent another few weeks on the '_Abe Inanimate_' spell, but I don't think that it will keep your interest much longer."

She paused a bit, trying to gather her thoughts, while Harry looked at her, wondering what was coming next. "I have two options for you. Firstly, I can excuse you from this class as soon as you master a spell and you come back when we start a new topic. Secondly, if you come to each lesson five minutes earlier than the others, I can use that time to give you the next assignment on the program. You work on that during the lesson. When you've done everything normally covered this year, I could give you some extra assignments on topics that we normally don't cover at Hogwarts. Which do you prefer?"

Harry pondered a bit on those questions. Extra time off would be great, but since his friends would be in class at the time, that option didn't really seem that interesting. On top of that, it would be cool to learn something special. His mind was made up.

"I would like the second option, professor," he finally said.

"Very well, Mr. Potter. I expect you next Tuesday five minutes early then. Now enjoy your lunch."

"Thank you, professor," Harry answered smiling. He walked out of the classroom, really looking forward to a decent lunch.


	5. Chapter 5: Three Heads?

DISCLAIMER: Not Mine... Too bad.

AN: Here's the next chapter. Hope you all enjoy it. Please leave some reviews. My thanks go out to etj4eagle for his help on this story.

**Chapter 5: Three Heads?**

Ginny and Harry practiced their meditation exercises diligently every night during their shared dreams, dreams that they now shared every night. Apparently dreaming together every night as opposed to only some of them had come together with their new found ability to talk to each other over large distances. Harry desperately hoped that their nightly dreams would continue for the rest of the year. He really missed being around Ginny and while they weren't together for real, the dreams certainly felt real enough to alleviate a bit of the need to be with Ginny in person. It was still not quite the same, but it was better than total separation. For now, the dreams would have to do.

The exercises were very tough and gave the two kids headaches if they did them for too long, even in their dreams. In the end they spent half the night exercising and half the night relaxing. Even though they only started doing the exercises a couple of days ago, they could already feel that it was getting easier to complete them. They were confident that before long they would be strong enough mentally to start organising their memories.

Before Harry really noticed, the first week at Hogwarts was over and the weekend had started. Saturday was spent relaxing with his dorm mates. They played chess, Exploding Snap and Gobstones all day long. Neville was a bit shy in the beginning, but Harry tried to include him in the conversations as much as possible and by the time the afternoon began, he was beginning to relax a bit. Harry was confident that with a little effort on his part, he could get the boy to come out of his shell.

Because Harry had done no school work at all on Saturday, early Sunday morning found him working hard on his homework in the common room. He had to write a very hard essay for Potions on the properties of horned slugs. He was finally starting to make headway, when suddenly he found the Weasley twins sitting in front of him.

_Oh no, here are your brothers again,_ Harry sighed. He heard Ginny giggling in response.

"Harry, boy, we're in a bit of a pickle," Fred began.

"You know we're the Beaters for the Gryffindor Quidditch team, yes?" George asked. Harry just nodded, wondering what they were doing here. "Well, yesterday were the tryouts for our new team."

"We are confident that our magnificent Keeper and Captain has put together an amazing team. We have three spectacular Chasers in Katie, Angelina and Alicia."

"Very cute Chasers too, if I may say so," George added with a grin.

"Indeed, dearest brother."

"Oh, I am dearest now? Does that mean I'm your favourite brother?"

"Nope, Charlie is still my favourite," Fred grinned. "But rest assured, you are a close second."

Harry was following the exchange with rolling eyes. "Eh, guys. As much as I appreciate you expressing your love for each other –"

"Right, Harry. Now, where was I? Oh, as I said, we've got three fine Chasers."

"We've got a very good Keeper and we're pretty confident about our beating abilities."

"What we don't have is a Seeker. Nobody showed up at the tryouts to fill that position."

"One would almost think they're scared to play that position," George said.

"I have no idea why, though. It's not like last year's Seeker was that terribly hurt."

"I know. He was only in the Hospital Wing for a week or five. Nothing serious."

"Anyway, we told Wood about your amazing flying abilities and he practically begged us to beg you to go talk to him so he could beg you to try out for Seeker."

"We always –"

"Mostly –"

"- do what our illustrious Captain says, so –"

They dropped theatrically to their knees in front of Harry, their hands folded in front of them.

"We beg you humbly to have a little chat with our Captain. Please, please, please, please, please."

"Enough already!" Harry shouted over their antics. He didn't know if he should be annoyed or laughing at the moment, so he settled for a neutral expression.

"I would love to play Quidditch. But I'm afraid that I won't be a much of a Seeker with these school brooms. And since we're not allowed to have our own brooms in our first-year, I fear that me being a Seeker won't do you much good."

"It's better than having no Seeker," Fred interjected.

_Just do it, Harry, _Ginny said. _You'll have a great time. I've seen you fly. Even the first time on a broom your manoeuvres were better than Fred and George's had ever been._

"Fine," Harry conceded finally. "I'll talk to Wood."

"Excellent!" the twins chorused.

"WOOD!" Fred shouted on the top of his voice. A burly young man came bounding down the dormitory stairs.

"Will you do it?" Wood asked enthusiastically before anybody could say something.

"Nice to meet you, Harry. I'm Oliver Wood. I've heard so much about you," Fred said sarcastically, when Wood failed to give Harry a proper greeting.

"Oh, right. Sorry about that, Harry," Wood said, looking a bit sheepish. "Nice to meet you." He held out his hand.

"Likewise," Harry said, shaking the hand.

"So, are you interested in playing Seeker?"

"Sure. But I'll need a broom and I can't have one since I'm a first-year."

Wood's mood dropped immediately.

_I have an idea! _Ginny said in his head. _Just order a broom and pretend that it belongs to someone else and that he lends it to you for Quidditch._

_Great idea, Gin, _Harry said, a smile creeping on his face. _Devious and clever, just as always._

"He has an idea," Fred remarked. "Look at his face lighting up."

Harry's smile grew wider. _Sorry you can't take credit for this, Gin._

Ginny laughed in his mind. _Just tell them, before my brothers' heads will fall of in anticipation._

Harry considered briefly dragging the thing out a bit and letting the twins suffer, but the look on Wood's face made him rethink that. His jaw was clenched so tightly from the nerves that Harry feared he was going to hear the teeth breaking any second now. "How about I order a broom and pretend it belongs to one of you? I won't be breaking any school rules. I'll just be loaning it to play Quidditch," Harry explained.

"The ickle firstie has a point," Fred said impressed.

"He has been spending too much time with Ginny. This seems like something she would do."

"Hey, you're still trying to convince me to play. No ickle firstie stuff or I walk," Harry said with a grin.

"Alright, Mr. Potter," George responded, trying to keep a serious face.

"Better," Harry smiled.

"Let's head to the pitch first. We'll order the broom later. You can use mine today," Fred suggested. The others agreed and the four of them left the common room smiling and walked to the pitch.

"Ready, Harry? Get on that broom and let me see you fly a bit first," Wood ordered.

Harry complied and did a few dives and rolls and loopings. After five minutes Wood called him back down, grinning even more broadly.

"The twins weren't exaggerating for once. Impressive flying, Harry. I think you'll do just fine as a Seeker. Now let's see you catch a few of these golf balls." Wood held up a small bag and mounted his broom himself. Harry followed the older boy as he flew up and waited for Wood to make his move. The latter threw one golf ball after another as far as he could. Harry was supposed to dive after them and catch them. He caught them all except for one. By the time the last ball was thrown, Wood looked like Christmas had come early.

"Excellent!" he shouted happily after the try-out was over. "Welcome to the team. First practice is tomorrow evening at seven. Don't be late. Just use a school broom until yours arrives. Later Harry!"

"Congratulations, Harry," Fred said smiling after Wood had run off. "We knew –"

"- you had it in you," George finished. "I think you just made the Hogwarts record books. You must be the youngest Seeker in a century."

"Really? I had no idea."

_Congratulations, Harry! _Ginny said happily in his mind. He could almost feel how proud she was of him.

_Thanks, Gin._

"Come on; let's go order your broom. I bet Ron will have a form somewhere in one of his Quidditch magazines."

Ron was still in his bed when Harry and the twins left the common room to go to the pitch that morning. When they came back in after the tryout, they found Ron sitting at a table. Apparently, the redhead had made an effort to work on his potions essay too. It was obvious, though, that he didn't find it interesting. He was snoring in his seat, head on the table and quill still in his hand. A little bit of drool was dripping from his mouth onto his freshly written parchment.

Fred and George held a finger to their lips to warn Harry to be silent, smiled mischievously to each other and moved next to their brother. Simultaneously they banged their flat hand on the table and shouted, "GOOD MORNING!"

Ron's head jerked up fast enough to give him a whiplash and the boy almost toppled out of his seat. When he was awake enough to see who had disturbed his slumber, he groaned loudly and groggily asked, "Wassgoin on?"

Harry stifled a laugh when Ron looked up. Apparently the ink on the parchment wasn't dry yet when Ron had laid his head down. He had ink smeared all over his left cheek. When Harry saw that the twins were pointedly ignoring that, he played along and refrained from reacting too. He did, though, describe the scene to Ginny, causing her to collapse in a fit of giggles back at the Burrow.

When Fred asked Ron about an order form for a broom, the sleep disappeared from Ron's eyes immediately. The mention of anything remotely Quidditch related was always enough to catch his attention. "Yeah, I have one," Ron said. He took a magazine out of his bag, but then seemed to realise something. He turned to Fred and looked at him suspiciously. "How will you buy a new broom, Fred? Where d'you get the money?"

"I don't have that kind of money, but our Harry does," Fred whispered conspiratorially pointing at his adoptive brother. "He has just been accepted as the new Gryffindor Seeker and he needs a decent broom if we want to have a chance at beating the other teams."

"Harry's the new Seeker?" Ron asked loudly.

"Shush. Keep quiet Ron," George admonished, looking around. Thankfully it appeared that nobody had heard him, so he turned back to his little brother. "Everyone thinks we don't have a Seeker. We want to keep Harry our secret weapon until the first match."

"Oh," Ron said softly. "So it's true then. You're the new Seeker?" He looked a bit jealous, but he still congratulated Harry.

_He has no reason to be jealous,_Ginny huffed when Harry mentioned his observation. _He doesn't want to be a Seeker anyway. He wants to be a Keeper._

"Anyway, little Harry here –"

"Hey!"

"Sorry, Harry, I forgot," Fred said rolling his eyes. "_Mr. Potter_ here needs a decent broom but first-years aren't allowed one. So Harry will buy a broom for me and I will let him use it for the practices and the games. Then at the end of the year I will give him the broom as a present."

"We're sort of sidestepping a few rules, but we're not breaking any."

"So, Ron. Any recommendations for a good racing broom?" Harry asked.

"I would say a Cleansweep seven or the new Nimbus," Ron said thoughtfully, scratching his ink covered cheek. "The Nimbus is the better of the two, but it's quite expensive. The Cleansweep is quite a bit slower, but still a decent broom. It's a lot cheaper, though."

"How much for the Nimbus?"

"Just a sec.," Ron said, turning the pages of his 'Which Broomstick' magazine. "Here we go. Eighty-seven Galleons. The Cleansweep is … just forty-two Galleons."

Harry went to his dormitory to collect his money bag and looked inside. He had taken enough money with him for three terms, or so Hagrid had said. He poured the contents on his bed and counted. He had one hundred and twenty seven Galleons left, so the Nimbus two thousand was a definite possibility. He quickly gathered eighty-seven Galleons and bagged them in another money pouch.

"Fred, you can order the Nimbus. I've got enough," Harry whispered, when he got back down.

Fred grinned in response, grabbed a quill and started filling in the form. "There you go," he said after a while, putting the quill down. "Now all we've got to do is send it off to the store. Can we use Hedwig for that? We trust her more than the school owls."

"Of course you can. It's for my broom, isn't it?"

They thanked Ron and left him to his homework, face still covered in ink. Laughing and joking they made their way to the Owlery. A few minutes later, Hedwig was off with a bag full of Galleons and a form to order a Nimbus 2000.

* * *

Harry woke up the next morning feeling very extremely nervous, a feeling that did not improve during breakfast. He dreaded his first lesson of the day so much that he had a hard time swallowing his food. That first lesson today was of course Potions, so he had reason to be nervous with his fear of Professor Snape discovering his connection with Ginny. By the time Harry and Ron were headed to the dungeons, Harry's heart was doing a techno impression in his chest. He knew that it was going to be hard to keep his eyes averted from Snape's the entire time; he just hoped that Snape would leave him alone today.

Harry, unfortunately, had no such luck. From the moment that Harry entered the classroom, Snape began making snide comments about Harry being a celebrity. Why did Snape have to pick on that? Harry didn't even want to be famous. He just wanted to be Harry. To be normal. He really didn't understand why that man could be so cruel to someone he had only seen twice in his life. It's not like Harry ever did something to offend Snape, was it? He had hardly said twenty words to the greasy git.

It took Harry all of his self-control not to react to Snape's continuous insults. Instead, he kept his eyes on his hands and concentrated on brewing his pain relieving potion. It was supposed to be a very easy potion to brew, but somehow he still managed to fail miserably. He didn't know if Snape had sabotaged his potion or if he just lost his concentration when the insults became too much to bare. Harry didn't have much trouble coping with the insults about himself – his relatives used to do that all the time – but when Snape switched to making comments about Harry's father, it became too much for him. Only Ginny's soothing voice in the back of his head had kept him from bolting out of the room.

Somehow Harry made it to the end of the class without once looking up. He dreaded tomorrow, though. Today was only one hour, but tomorrow he had a double lesson. He had no idea if his resolve was strong enough to keep himself from reacting during a two hour insult spree.

_Why don't you go to Dumbledore? Surely he can do something about Snape, _Ginny suggested after the lesson.

_I can't. At least, not yet,_Harry answered, effectively vetoing the suggestion. _If Dumbledore is really the greatest wizard of the age, surely he is a Legilimens too. I don't want to risk our secret just to have it a little easier in class._

_It's not a little easier, Harry. That man is bloody cruel._

Ginny's mental voice was so full of passion and anger that Harry didn't even notice her less civilised language. He could see where it came from, though. If someone was talking to her in the way Snape talked to him, he would be pretty angry too.

_I know, Gin. And I promise I'll go to Dumbledore as soon as I master Occlumancy._

He knew that that would at least be a few weeks, but as long as his mind wasn't protected, he couldn't take any chances. Their bond was only between him and Ginny and not even the man who got him away from the Dursleys had the right to know about it. No, for the moment it was better to ignore everything Snape did. When he mastered Occlumancy, then he would talk to Dumbledore about the abusive teaching style of the Potions master.

Ginny sighed at the response. _I guess I can understand that, _she answered. _But we have to work harder on Occlumancy then. The sooner we tell someone about Snape, the better._

_I've been thinking about that, Gin. Maybe we should start organising our mind tonight. _

_Already?_ _But the book recommended at least a month of concentration exercises before you try to organise your mind._

_I know. I'll keep up with them, too. But only before I go to sleep. In our dream tonight, we can try to organise it. If it doesn't work, then we'll have to wait a bit longer. If it does, we'll master it sooner, which means I can go to Dumbledore sooner too. _

_Maybe you're right. It doesn't hurt to try anyway._

The rest of the day passed quickly. In Herbology they learned about different sorts of nutrition and fertilizer for the plants. Harry quickly discovered that dragon dung smelled a lot worse than other kinds. He was glad when the double class was over. History that afternoon was just as boring as last time and Harry only managed to stay awake long enough to hear something about Oulaf the Ugly, before he drifted away in an enjoyable nap.

Quidditch practice was a welcome relief that evening. He was pushed to the edge by the ever enthusiastic Oliver Wood, but he didn't mind. The high speeds really cleared his head. From the moment he took off his troubles were forgotten. Wood let Harry use a Training Snitch today. It was larger than a normal one as it was not meant to be caught. Instead, its purpose was to lead the training Seeker through all kinds of steep dives, sharp turns and difficult twists. It was extremely exhausting, but also satisfying if you actually managed to keep up.

Physically beat, Harry dragged himself to bed after practice. He quickly did a few of his meditation exercises before going to sleep. He was gone before his head hit the pillow. Soon after, he was dreaming again.

_Harry found himself walking again in the now familiar fields. He slowly walked alongside the stream, waiting for Ginny to join him. Just like they did most of the nights, he had recreated the scene from their first dream. It was there that they felt most at ease. They both had a connection to that place, even if Harry had never been there in the real world. _

_Harry stopped in his tracks gazing in the distance. She would be here any second now. He was sure of it. They only could control their dreams when they dreamt together._

_Then there she was. He could feel her before he saw her. A broad smile formed on his face. _

"_Ginny!"_

"_Hi, Harry!" _

_They greeted each other enthusiastically and after a long hug, the two of them sat down under their favourite tree by the stream. For a few moments they just enjoyed being close to each other again. Finally Ginny spoke up._

"_We should start organising our memories," she suggested._

_Harry readily agreed and so the two kids concentrated on their task diligently. Their minds had to be protected as soon as possible. According to the twins, it was possible to protect your thoughts without Snape knowing that you could do Occlumancy. To accomplish that, you only had to sort the memories that you wanted to hide. All those unsorted would still float around freely in your head. When someone then tried to read your mind, they would come across those free memories. This would give you time to either react to the invasion or brake the contact._

_Soon the two found out that they had a larger task than first thought. They had a lot of thoughts and memories that contained a reference to their bond. They realised that to hide their bond, they would have to organise all the memories they had ever since they had their first dream together. Every waking moment since then – and a lot of the sleeping ones too – had been shared between the two of them, either in person, in their dreams or through thought-speak. That was almost a full month of recollections to sort through. The fact that they were conscious every moment of the day lately, even asleep, made the work all the more vast._

_The organising itself required a lot of concentration. They had to imagine books in their head and fill them with memories in a logical way. The easiest was to create different ones for different topics or persons. That is what they did. They both created a book for every person they knew, for every class Harry had and a few others, like one for everything Quidditch-related and one for their Pranks and so on. They had a lot to sort through and most of the memories belonged in two or more of the albums, so the progress was slow. While the work was hard, they felt pretty good after their sorting session. Almost every memory they had gone through had been a happy one. _

_After a few hours of hard work, both of them were mentally exhausted but in very good spirits. For the remainder of the night they just relaxed in the shade of the tree in a comfortable silence._

* * *

First next day was Transfiguration, so far his favourite class. As agreed last week, Harry was sitting with professor McGonagall in the Transfiguration classroom five minutes before the beginning of the lesson.

"Good morning, Mr. Potter," McGonagall greeted. "How was your first week at Hogwarts?"

"It was … surprising," Harry responded with a small fake smile. It hadn't been nearly as good as expected and Snape was the main reason for that. Maybe he could tell McGonagall about Snape's lessons. She would be easier to reach anyway; Harry saw Dumbledore only at mealtimes and he really didn't want to speak to him in front of the entire Great Hall. But not yet though. He didn't want to do anything until he was sure he could hide their bond from others.

"That I can believe. I heard you had quite a bit of excitement this weekend," McGonagall said. She lowered her voice a bit. "I heard you made the Gryffindor Quidditch team."

"Yes, ma'am. I'm the Seeker," Harry answered with a grin.

She gave him a small smile. "I hope you do well. Professor Snape had had the pleasure of putting the cup in his office for far too long. Maybe you can change that this year."

"I certainly hope so," Harry replied. "I will do my best."

"What broom will you use? I don't think the school brooms are good enough for a real Quidditch match. And certainly not for a Seeker."

"Er –"

_Just tell her the truth,_Ginny's voice suddenly said. _You didn't break any rules after all. You just sidestepped a few._

"I'll be using a Nimbus 2000, professor," he said a bit nervous.

"You do know that first-years aren't allowed a broom at Hogwarts?"

Harry tried to size her up. She didn't look mad or anything. She just looked curious and maybe a little amused. "Well, I'm not breaking any rules, professor. But I might be bending them a bit," he admitted.

"Really?" McGonagall raised an eyebrow, which looked quite comical on her stern face. Harry struggled to keep his face serious. "Tell me."

"Well, I gave Fred Weasley money to buy a broom, which he will loan me for the practices and the matches. When the year is over, he will give me the broom as a present."

"I see," she said. Her eyes were laughing, but she held her stern look. "You are indeed breaking no rules that I know off. Congratulations on Mr. Weasley's new broom."

Harry laughed. "Thank you, professor."

Her face twisted a bit more business-like. "About the lesson today. The others will continue with the same spell as last time. You however will try something new. I will give you a few objects and you will try to change the colour of the surface. Before you perform the spell, you should concentrate on the colour the surface should get. The spell is '_Muta Colori'_ and the wand movements are like so." She demonstrated the wand movements to him and made him copy her. "Very good. This will change the entire object's surface in a single colour. It is fairly easy and I suspect that you will be able to move on to a similar but more difficult spell next lesson. Ah, there are the other students. Go find yourself a seat. Good luck, Mr. Potter."

Harry nodded and found himself a seat next to Ron. The latter was still struggling with the '_Abe Inanimate_', but he was getting better. His match was already silver looking. Harry managed to get a decent control of the new spell fairly quickly, just as professor McGonagall had predicted. She beamed proudly in his direction, when he managed to give his desk a beautiful Gryffindor red colour towards the end of the lesson. It also earned him another five points, which he suspected he would lose in the next lesson.

Potions was every bit as gruelling as the day before. Harry noticed that more and more of the insults were directed at his parents. Snape probably saw that those hurt Harry the most. From what Harry understood from Snape's comments, Snape and his parents had been together at Hogwarts when they were young. Obviously they didn't like each other. Snape accused his father of being arrogant and big-headed more than once, but Harry had a hard time believing that. Everyone he had met so far had said that his parents were the finest people they had ever known. The greasy git was the only one who said otherwise, so after a few times even those comments began to become easier to ignore.

Harry still kept his eyes averted at all times. He supposed that he had to look strange while working on his potion. For two hours he hadn't looked anywhere but at his hands. The result: a blown cauldron at the end of class. He was sure he had made the potion correctly though, so he suspected foul play again, either from one of the Slytherins or from Snape himself. The latter took twenty points from Gryffindor and gave Harry a detention for causing the explosion. Harry thought this was completely unfair, since Goyle had done the same just five minutes ago and he didn't even get a warning. If only he had mastered Occlumancy, he'd go running straight to Dumbledore.

Luckily, he didn't have to serve his detention with Snape. That would have been too much for the young boy. Instead, he had to report with Filch for cleaning duty on Saturday evening. It didn't sound very enjoyable, but it would be better than a few hours of private insults under Snape's personal care.

And then Potions was over. Harry sighed deeply in relief. He had made it. No more Snape until next Monday. He allowed himself to relax a little and thoroughly enjoyed the hearty lunch in the Great Hall.

* * *

The next morning, Harry woke up a bit later than usual. He hurried down to breakfast and sat down at the table, just in time for the mail to arrive. He saw Hedwig flying in with two other owls, carrying a long thin package. Just as Harry had instructed, Hedwig delivered the broom to Fred. He was itching to go check it out, but Harry really couldn't give it away that easily that he was the secret weapon for the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

Fred just nodded lightly in Harry's direction and set the package next to him without opening it.

The classes that morning seemed too long. In Charms, they learned '_Incendio'_ and after that, Harry sat through a gruelling long double period of History of Magic. His thoughts kept returning to the beautiful broom that was right now hidden away in his dormitory, where Fred had undoubtedly deposited the broom after he received it. It had arrived almost four hours ago and he had not even seen a glimpse of it. Harry could not wait until he could ride the fastest broom available. He kept twisting and turning in his seat, his mind not at all on the lecture about bloody goblin rebellions. The Nimbus kept flying through his thoughts. The moment that the bell rung to indicated the end of the period, Harry dashed out of classroom and sprinted down the corridors and up the stairs to the Gryffindor tower.

"Wow," Harry whistled when he opened the package in his dormitory. Fred had been considerate enough to leave it packed until Harry could open it. He softly ran his hand over the smooth, gleaming surface of the broom. He couldn't resist himself and mounted the broom immediately. He kicked off lightly and hovered a bit in his dormitory. It was incredibly stable. It stayed at the exact same altitude without any effort at all. He remembered how the school brooms handled. They shook and trembled with every movement. This one handled smoothly and without any hitches. It was heaven. He couldn't wait to get it out onto the pitch.

* * *

The rest of the week found Harry in a far better mood. Lessons during the day were interesting; Quidditch practice was hard, but extremely fulfilling and the moments spent with his new friends were always fun, even if it was just losing against Ron in Wizard Chess. And best of all, no more Snape until the next Monday. On top of that, the nights were filled with sorting through the best memories of his life. It was hard to keep concentrating, but the memories were good enough to do it with a smile on his face. Slowly Harry and Ginny worked their way through everything that happened in the last month. By the time Saturday arrived, they only had a few more days to go through.

When dinner was over that evening, Harry headed to the entrance Hall to serve his detention with Filch. When he arrived there, the caretaker was waiting for him, a crooked smile on his face.

"Ah, there is our wrongdoer," he croaked evilly. "You're lucky, boy. If I had my way, you'd be hanging by your ankles in the dungeons. Nobody would break the rules anymore if I could punish you all the way I want to. But no; the headmaster says 'No hurting the students', no matter how much I ask. Mind my words. One day, I'll have my way and than you'll all be in for it."

Harry resisted the urge to roll his eyes when Filch started ranting. He just waited patiently while the man finished his lecture. The caretaker thrust a bucket and a mop in Harry's hands.

"Now, you may escape the finer punishments tonight, but that doesn't mean I go soft on you. You are to clean the entire entrance hall, no magic allowed. Mrs. Norris will keep an eye on you, won't you sweetie," Filch said, reaching down to pet his trusted cat. Mrs. Norris seemed to puff out her chest at the mention of her name and took a seat on a windowsill, her eyes fixed on Harry.

The boy sighed and silently set to work. It was not so bad, he supposed. He had a lot of practice cleaning at the Dursleys and at least nobody would beat him if he screwed up here. In addition, he had Ginny to keep him company. They only talked sporadically, but that was because she had found another way to take the edge of the punishment. Scrubbing the floors, Harry concentrated on Ginny's end of the link and together they listened to the Wizarding Wireless. It took his mind of the hard labour. He didn't know any of the songs, but Ginny did. And sometimes she sang along with the music. She had a soft voice and Harry found it strangely relaxing.

After an hour and a half, the entrance hall was almost looking spotless. Just a few more minutes and he would be done. But it seemed Snape and/or the Slytherins had other plans. Suddenly the front doors swung open and the Slytherin Quidditch team marched in after their practice. The weather was terrible outside and thus the players were all covered in mud. They laughed openly at the fuming first-year when they crossed the hall, smearing it with muddy prints as they went.

Harry mumbled a few choice words that made even Ginny say, _Language, Harry!_ and she was used to a lot, growing up with six brothers.

_Sorry, _he thought to her. _It's just that I was almost done and now I have to start all over again. And I'm pretty sure that Snape planned this when he set my punishment for this evening. I'm so sick of this._

_Not so long anymore, Harry. We can almost start building our shields._

_Easy for you to say,_ he huffed, frustrated. _You are sitting nice and relaxed at home, while I'm here being insulted and punished all the time._

_Hey! That's not fair! You know I'd rather be there with you._

Harry was silent for a few moments, while furiously mopping the dirty tiles. Then he relaxed. _I know, Gin. Sorry._

He went back to his cleaning and he finished just before it turned nine. He massaged his sore arms for a few moments, before he started to climb the many stairs back to the Gryffindor Common Room. When he reached the fourth floor, he stopped when he heard someone calling for him.

"Hi Harry," the voice of Hermione greeted him. She was obviously coming from the library, a bag full of books slung over her shoulder.

"Hey, Hermione."

"What are you doing here?"

"I just had detention with -," Harry started saying, but he stopped in the middle of his sentence and his tracks. He motioned to Hermione to move back. "Peeves," he whispered, pointing at the bell-covered hat that was just visible over the railing a floor up. The Poltergeist was probably hiding there to prank the next person walking by. Harry didn't feel like being covered in dragon dung or something equally disgusting, so he opted for a quiet retreat instead. "Maybe he hasn't seen us yet. We can go around."

The two Gryffindors started descending, planning to go to the second floor, cross the corridor there and go up the other way. Their hopes to make an unseen retreat were squashed when Peeves' evil cackle broke the silence.

"Ooooh, the ickle firsties are running from good ol' Peevsie. Not afraid of a bit of good fun, are you?" The Poltergeist laughed evilly and flew down towards them.

"Quick, this way!" Harry yelled, dragging Hermione with him. He ran down a flight and turned into a dark corridor, intending to hide there until it was safe to go up again.

Peeves' singsong voice told them that they hadn't lost the Poltergeist yet. "Ickle firsties, where are you? Don't you hide for Peeves you two! 'Cause little Peeves will search all day, until he can prank you anyway!"

"In here," Harry whispered. He tried to push open a door, but it was locked firmly. "Damn, it's closed!" he cursed.

"Move over," Hermione said, pushing him to the side. She pointed her wand to the door and said, "_Alohomora!" _The lock clicked and the door swung open without a sound. Quickly the two hurried inside, closing the door behind them. "Do you think we've lost him?" she whispered.

"I don't know," Harry answered. He put his ear to the door and listened. Very faintly he heard Peeves voice. "Oh, no, Peevsie. They would not go that way, no, they would not. Dangerous over there. Maybe they went this way."

The cackle was softening, so Harry thought Peeves was leaving. He was just about to nudge Hermione when she suddenly screamed. Harry whirled around, his wand drawn in a second, even though he only knew a few spells to use. The sight that greeted him pushed nearly all the air out of his lungs. A huge, three headed dog was standing in front of him, growling softly, slowly edging closer. The dog was too close to open the door safely as it swung inwards. He had to do something.

_What's happening?!_ Ginny screamed in his head.

Harry didn't answer though. No time right now. Not really knowing what else to do, he did the first spell that came to mind. "_Lumos_!" he screamed. A very bright light erupted from the tip of his wand. Good fortune was with him, because the dog yelped and retreated a bit; just enough for Harry to open the door and push Hermione and himself through it. They ran all the way back to the common room, passing Peeves so fast he didn't even have the time to do his prank. They only stopped when they were safely through the portrait hole.

Breathing heavily, they collapsed in two soft chairs opposite Ron and Neville, who were playing a chess game.

"What's got you two so worked up?" Ron asked, frowning at the two heavily sweating kids across.

_Yeah, I'd like to know too! What's going on?_ Ginny said, sounding a bit frustrated.

"Just a sec. Need to … breathe," Harry panted. When he had caught his breath, he relayed the events to his friends.

"A three headed dog? Are you serious?" Ron asked sceptically.

Harry rolled his eyes. "Yes, Ron. Three heads! We're not making this up. If you don't believe us, it's on the third floor. Go look for yourself!"

"I remember now!" Hermione suddenly said. "That was the forbidden corridor. You know, the one professor Dumbledore warned us about first day."

"Why are they keeping a beast like that in a school anyway?" Neville asked softly. He had lost a bit of his shyness around the others, but his voice was usually still a bit timid.

"No idea," Harry answered. "But I'm certainly not going back there again. Its fangs were large enough to swallow my head in one bite. And then there were still the two other heads to worry about!"

"You didn't use your eyes, did you? It was standing on a trapdoor. I think it was guarding something," Hermione said.

_Do you think…_? Ginny asked, connecting the dots just as fast as Harry did.

_I think that, if it is indeed guarding something, that it might be what Hagrid got out of that vault. Should I tell the others?_

Ginny was silent for a bit. _I don't think you should,_ she answered finally. _Hagrid did ask you not to tell anyone. _

"I think you might be right, Hermione," Harry said out loud. "But if it is, it's not our concern. It's not like anyone would try to steal it with that dog guarding it."

"I suppose," she answered a bit pensive. Then she rose from her seat. "Anyway, I'm going to bed. I've had quite enough excitement for one night."

"'Night, Hermione!" Harry said. He sat there staring in the fire for a few minutes, still trying to control his heart rate. Then he rose, said goodnight to Ron and Neville, claiming to need an early night himself and went to his dormitory. In reality, he planned on reading a bit in the book on Occlumancy. If all went well, then tonight they would finish sorting and they could move on to building the protections. He got into his four-poster bed and shut the curtains. With the light of his wand, he started reading.

According to the book, there were a lot of different techniques to protect the mind. The ideal technique was different for everyone. Some built walls around their minds; others enclosed their memories in strong boxes; still others imagined a Muggle safe to lock their memories in. You had to use the one that sounded the strongest to you. You could even combine several to increase the strength of your protections. Harry and Ginny chose for two techniques. They would enclose the memories in a thick metal ball so no one could reach it. In addition, they would try to master one of the techniques the twins probably used. It was possible to hide your memories away, if a Legilimens tried to read you, not just shield them. It's was not an easy technique, though. It involved a lot of skill. The principle was fairly easy. If you felt a Legilimency attack, you had to move your protected memories to the other side of your mind, so the Legilimens wouldn't find them. If you mastered this and all your memories were protected, then it would seem to the attacker that the mind was empty; that there were no thoughts to be found.

Fairly certain that he had committed the techniques to his mind, Harry put the book away and went to sleep, looking forward to seeing Ginny again.


	6. Chapter 6: Confrontations and Pranks

DISCLAIMER: Still not mine...

AN: A nice long chapter for you guys to enjoy. Hope you like it. Thanks again to etj4eagle for his ideas and help. Please leave a review at the end

******Chapter 6: Confrontations And Pranks**

Tuesday mid-morning found Harry once again feeling quite queasy and terrified as he sat in the Potions classroom waiting for class to begin. Luckily it was Tuesday and therefore this was his last Potions class of the week, but that didn't mean that he was feeling any better about it, as evidenced by the cold sweat that was forming on his back. Not even the defences against Snape's mind invasions that he had begun building over the past two weeks relaxed him, as he did not yet have any confidence in his ability to hide the bond from Snape. While the iron ball containing his secrets in his mind was beginning to take shape, it didn't yet look strong enough. Its surface was still rough, with pits and cracks strewn across it. As for the second technique that he was learning, that one was even less developed. He could move the ball around a bit, but enough for it to matter. While the book said that that wasn't a cause for concern, since it took time to gain control, that did not give Harry much comfort. After all, the writer probably didn't expect to get assaulted while still in the learning stage.

Thus, as he had each of his previous lessons, when Harry saw Snape entering the classroom, he lowered his eyes. Also as it had been the past few lessons, Neville was sitting beside him. Snape had switched Neville and Ron at the beginning of a lesson a few weeks ago, saying something about concentrating the exploding cauldrons to one place, as not to affect anyone else's work. Harry found this pretty ironic, in a really twisted way. It was true that Harry and Neville had the lowest grades in this class and they both had their fair share of exploding cauldrons. But then again, Snape was the sole reason for Harry's poor results. And maybe even the sole reason for Neville's too. The boy might be a tad more forgetful than the average person, but overall he was pretty intelligent. It just was that he was nearly as terrified of the Potions master as Harry was; Snape treated him with nearly as much contempt as he did Harry.

Unfortunately, it was just not Snape who was hard enough to deal with on his own, but the Gryffindors also had to tolerate the Slytherins too who all followed their teacher's example in tormenting the Gryffindors as much as they could. They laughed at them, threw insults at every possible and impossible moment and even tried to sabotage the potions by throwing ingredients across the classroom. Whenever someone complained, Snape dismissed them without hearing them out or punished them for telling lies. Harry wondered why none of the others had gone complaining to Dumbledore yet. Surely they didn't think that this was tolerated teacher behaviour.

That, however, was something to find out some other time. Now it was time to concentrate on his work and so Harry started chopping up some ingredients and followed the instructions on the blackboard. Working on his potion diligently, Harry was a bit surprised to find that as the lesson drew to a close that his potion actually looked very good. It was the exact pale blue colour that Snape had told them to expect. Looking around the room briefly, Harry noticed that the only other potions that looked just as good were Malfoy's, Hermione's and surprisingly Neville's. Apparently, Neville had kept his mind on his potion this time; usually, Neville's potions were only just marginally better than Harry's.

The various potions were not the only thing that Harry saw during the brief moment that he took to look around the classroom; he also saw Malfoy throw something in his direction. Reacting purely on reflex, he reached out and caught the object just before it landed in Neville's cauldron.

"Potter! What do you think you're doing?" Snape yelled from across the room as he looked over in Harry's direction and saw him with his arm reached out over Neville's potion. "Are you trying to ruin Longbottom's potion so you can look good for once? Give me that!"

Quickly lowering his eyes as Snape strode over, Harry dropped the item in Snape's hand.

"Hellebore?!" a murderous looking Snape cried out as he looked at what he had just confiscated from Harry. "Are you crazy, Potter? I told you in the beginning of the lesson that it reacts badly with the Wolfsbane. You could have killed Longbottom and probably would have lost your arm in the process."

Harry paled at the thought of what could have happened to his friend if he hadn't caught that. "I didn't try to ruin his potion!" he tried to explain. He didn't want to be called a murderer, after all. "Malfoy threw it across the room!"

"And trying to frame another student for it too!" Snape sneered evilly, drawing his wand. "Look at me when I talk to you!"

Reluctantly Harry looked up and met the Potions master's eyes. Immediately he felt Snape's presence invading his mind, stronger than he had ever felt it before. Memory after memory of his time with the Dursleys swam before his eyes. Long forgotten ridicules and punishments were suddenly remembered while Snape was viewing them. In the meantime, Harry felt the fingers moving closer to his best kept secrets collected in the metal ball. He tried to pry his eyes away from Snape's piercing gaze, but he found he couldn't move an inch. He was stuck and all his secrets were about to be exposed. The thing he had tried so hard to avoid these last weeks was about to happen anyway. But it couldn't! Harry could not allow Snape access. He had worked too damn hard to keep his secrets to fail now. There was only one thing left for him to do. He ignored his building headache as best as possible and concentrated harder than ever before on moving the metal ball away from the fingers.

It moved slowly at first, always staying just out of reach of Snape's invasion. But he gained control fast and soon he was able to keep it well away from the attack. Finally, after what felt like hours, Snape's presence left his head and Harry found himself looking in the surprised and calculating eyes of the professor. Snape was silent for a few moments, his gaze still directed at Harry, but the piercing quality gone.

_Thank god that's over, _Harry said to Ginny, massaging his temples. Slowly the headache lessened and he could think normally again.

_Are you ok?_ she asked softly, concern for him evident in her voice. _What happened?_

_I'm fine. Snape used Legilimency on me. I could keep the ball away from him, though. I don't think he found out anything. Our secret is still safe._

She was about to answer him, when the professor spoke again, his voice soft but filled with the promise of punishment if anyone dared to disobey. "Class dismissed. Everybody out! Not you, Potter!" he added when Harry stood up to leave with his friends. "You're coming with me!"

Harry gulped audibly. Staying alone with Snape was everyone's worst nightmare and now he was about to live it. He wondered about what was going to happen. One by one the students filed out of class, some sending him a sympathetic smile, others - like Malfoy - flashing an evil grin in his direction. When the last had left, Snape motioned for Harry to follow him.

Harry did so, almost running to keep up with the long strides of the professor. They walked for almost five minutes, through probably a few dozen corridors and up several flights of stairs, before they finally turned into a hallway that appeared to have a dead end. All the while Ginny was sending him soothing words, but it didn't relax the two of them much. Just like Harry, she was filled with trepidation about what Snape had planned. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

Snape approached the Gargoyle at the end of the Hallway and whispered something to the statue that Harry couldn't quite catch. Immediately it sprung aside, revealing a revolving staircase. Harry followed Snape onto the moving stairs and slowly they rode them to the top. He suspected that he was being taken to see Dumbledore. Would the headmaster believe all the lies Snape could - and probably would - tell? Would he be expelled for almost killing another student? Or would Dumbledore believe his side of the story and punish the real culprit?

Without knocking Snape pushed through the door into the headmaster's office.

"The Potter boy has gone too far today and he should be expelled!" Snape said immediately, skipping the formalities.

"Good morning, Severus. And a good morning to you too, Harry," Dumbledore greeted jovially as if he was just having them over for tea. "Why don't the two of you sit down and tell me what happened? Lemon Drop?" he asked, holding out a bowl filled with sweets.

Harry immediately did as told and sat down on one of the wooden chairs, ignoring the sweets. Snape on the other hand looked at the headmaster as if he'd grown a second head for a moment, before he started pacing around the office, probably trying to gather his thoughts to plead his case. Harry took the time to look around the office. It was, in one word, huge! The left wall was lined with cupboards and small tables. They were filled with lots of weird objects and silver trinkets, which were spinning, puffing, smoking and ticking. Dozens of portraits hung above them. The subjects all seemed to be sleeping in their frame, but every once in the while Harry caught one of them opening an eye to peek at the goings-on. The back wall was filled with books, rows upon rows of thick, dusty, leather bound tomes. Harry supposed they contained a wealth of knowledge. He wondered briefly if the old headmaster had read them all. It looked like that task could fill a lifetime or two, but then again, Dumbledore was very old, so he assumed it was possible.

In front of the window on the right hand side was a perch with on top of that a beautiful red and gold bird. Its long feathers shone in the low autumn sun and when it sang, Harry was filled with hope and courage to face the coming discussion.

_That was beautiful,_ Ginny agreed with him.

_It's a beautiful bird too. I've never seen anything like it!_

While Harry was bolstered by the bird's song, Snape flinched and seemed to pale when he heard the sounds. Snape took a deep breath, finally sat down on the chair and addressed the headmaster.

"I just caught the boy trying to sabotage one of his fellow student's potions. If I hadn't caught him before he dropped it, it would probably have resulted in grievous injuries on the student's part."

"I didn't," Harry interrupted. "I just caught the Hellebore that Malfoy threw at us."

"Shut up, you stupid boy!" Snape snarled in a voice so much resembling his uncle Vernon's that it made Harry want to crawl under his seat. "Don't try to blame this on someone else. There's no use denying it. I caught you in the act!"

"Now, Severus. No need to get offensive!" Dumbledore's voice was soft but stern and filled with power.

"Sorry, headmaster. But he should be punished for what he's done!"

"I will investigate the matter and if the other students confirm your story, I will take action. Might I ask who would have been the victim?"

"Longbottom."

Dumbledore frowned, his eyebrows disappearing behind his bushy silver hair. "As I believe, Mr. Longbottom is one of Harry's best friends. You didn't find it suspicious that he would try to hurt one of his own friends?"

"Don't ask me to understand the twisted logics of an eleven year old boy. I know what I saw!"

"That will do, Severus. Perhaps we should listen to Harry's side of the story now. Please tell me what happened, Harry." The headmaster folded his hands and leaned forward to show the boy he had his full attention.

Harry shifted nervously in his chair and started to tell what happened. "Well, sir. I was working on my potion and from the corner of my eye I saw Ma… Draco throwing something in Neville's and my direction. I managed to catch it just before it fell into Neville's cauldron. I did not even realize that it was Hellebore, which would have reacted badly with the potion, until Sn … professor Snape started to accuse me and then -"

He paused a bit, looking sideways at Snape. _Should I tell something about the Legilimency?_

_Maybe.__The book says it's illegal to perform on others without permission, except for some members of the Wizengamot. Perhaps this is a way to get rid of Snape. But just be vague about it._

"What Harry?" Dumbledore asked really interested. "What happened then?"

"I don't know. First everything went black before my eyes and then I started seeing memories of the Dursleys in my mind. And my head hurt terribly!"

"Severus?" the headmaster asked, disappointment visible in all his features.

The Potions master appeared to shrink under Dumbledore's judging gaze. "I just tried to confirm my suspicions," he murmured in response, suddenly sounding like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar.

Dumbledore sighed. "And… Did you?"

"Er… No, actually," Snape admitted. "I couldn't find anything. In fact, I found nothing whatsoever of the time at Hogwarts. Only a few -" Snape flicked his eyes at Harry shortly. "- occurrences from before."

Had Harry not know what they were talking about, he would have found it a very peculiar conversation. The two adults were both skilfully evading anything that could clue Harry in on the topic, but knowing what he did about Legilimency and Occlumency, it was easy for him to follow. It sounded like his Occlumency worked exactly as it should.

"Nothing at all? That is indeed strange."

"Yes, nothing! If I didn't know better I would say he knows Occ …" Snape stopped there, remembering that Harry was sitting next to him and leaned closer to the headmaster to whisper the rest of the sentence.

The headmaster's eyebrows rose again and he focused his gaze on Harry. The now familiar tingling feeling came back and Harry retreated his mental ball to the back of his mind, far away from the prying fingers.

"Sir? What's happening?" Harry asked, clutching his head. The feeling disappeared immediately and Harry let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

"Nothing to worry about, Harry. I was just testing something. I'm sorry if I caused you any discomfort."

_He's letting Snape get away with it! _Harry seethed, trying to keep his face impassive. _He knows what Snape did and he's doing nothing about it!_

_We don't know that, Harry. Maybe he just doesn't want to berate him in front of you._

"Severus? Why don't you go and get Mr. Longbottom. I think an impartial witness could solve our problem." Dumbledore said. Snape nodded and left the office without a word. "Now, Harry. Is there something you would like to share with me?"

_Is he talking about the Occlumency or about something else?_ Harry asked.

_I don't know, Harry. But you should tell him about how Snape acts in class, now that you can hide our bond._

Harry couldn't find a reason to disagree. So Harry started to tell Dumbledore about all the insults he had to bear, the biased attitude Snape had, all the points that had unjustly been taken from him and the suspicions about his failed potions. Throughout the tale, he saw the headmaster getting more and more uneasy in his seat.

"And I don't even know why he's so … why he hates me. I have done nothing to him," Harry finished.

* * *

Later after a long discussion in Dumbledore's office, a silent Harry and Neville were walking down to catch the end of lunch. Harry's thoughts were focused on their recently ended meeting with the headmaster. After Harry had told the headmaster all he could about Snape, the old man had confirmed his suspicions. His parents and Snape were here at Hogwarts together when they were young and his father and Snape were not particularly on good terms throughout their years here. From day one in their first year there had been nothing but animosity between the two. It seemed like the … detest Snape had for the Potters didn't die with Harry's father. 

Harry found this kind of shallow on Snape's part; hating someone for who his father was that is. It was the same thing Malfoy did in the case of Muggleborns and Harry didn't like it, especially not when it was directed at him. Professor Dumbledore had promised to have a long talk with Snape about his behaviour. He made Harry promise to come tell him when the situation didn't improve and then Ginny made him remake the same promise to her.

When Snape brought Neville in, the boy immediately confirmed Harry's story. The only thing he couldn't confirm was Malfoy's part in it. He had only seen Harry catch the Hellebore. The Potions master tried to accuse Neville for lying, but to Harry's surprise, Neville didn't cower in front of Snape this time. He vehemently stood by his story and Harry almost expected him to hex Snape at one moment when the latter threw a particularly nasty insult at Neville's head. Finally Dumbledore managed to diffuse the situation and sent the two boys to dinner. Harry suspected that Snape was going to get a huge telling off, judging from the fire burning in Dumbledore's eyes. At least that's what he hoped. The situation in the Potions class could definitely use some improvement.

"Are your bags packed, Potter? When are they chucking you out?" a voice sounded suddenly from behind the two friends.

Anger filled Harry as he heard Malfoy's voice and he rapidly turned around while pulling out his wand and pointing it straight at the blonde boy who now stood in front of him. Malfoy was leaning arrogantly against the wall, his two loyal bodyguards standing behind him. Not even an hour ago he almost hurt one of his friends and now he was again trying to stir up trouble. Harry really wanted the hex the boy good.

_Ginny, what's the incantation for that hex you use on your brothers? _he asked his friend quickly, remembering the marvellous Bat-Bogey Hex she had used on the twins this summer after a rather unpleasant prank.

_Just leave, Harry._ _You'll get into trouble. He's not worth it!_

He took a deep breath and tried to relax. It didn't work so well, but he still listened to her advice. "Not today, Malfoy. And I don't plan on being chucked out any time soon. I'm sure an arrogant little bastard like yourself will be out of here long before me," he said, his teeth clenched. Harry turned around and started moving away, dragging Neville with him by the arm.

"Watch your mouth, Potter, or you might find it closed permanently somewhere in the future," Malfoy growled in an icy voice.

"I'm not worried about a little coward like you, Malfoy." Harry shouted without turning around.

"Don't call me a coward!" Malfoy yelled, followed by a muttered curse. Harry dove to the side just in time, avoiding the jet of light by a mere inch.

Harry clambered back on his feet, his wand pointed straight at his opponents. He looked frantically for a way out knowing that the odds were terribly against him. It was only him and Neville against three others. And neither he nor his friend knew any offensive spells, but it was obvious Malfoy did, though. Furthermore, there was no easy way out of the fight. Malfoy stood in front of him and a staircase lay behind. If he got cursed while descending the stairs, it could end up being very painful. He really didn't want to fight, but there didn't seem to be another way. He aimed his wand carefully. A fast hex on Malfoy and maybe he and Neville could dash past the blonde boy.

_Ginny, I need that incantation!_

_Creschiroptera!_she answered immediately, noting the panic in his voice. _Just point and say the incantation._

Just before Harry was about to try his hex and run tactic, he chanced a look to the boy at his side. Neville stood there rock solid, looking pale and a little nervous, but his jaw set in an uncharacteristically grim way. Judging by the murderous look in his eyes, Neville wasn't going to run. He was going to fight.

"You just proved it yourself that you are a coward, Malfoy," Neville taunted. "Attacking someone in the back is not really the bravest thing to do, you know." For the second time that day the slightly plump boy managed to surprise Harry. This was not at all the Neville Harry knew. This one was angry and out for revenge. Apparently the attempt to sabotage his potion in such a vile and potentially lethal way had snapped something in Neville.

"Shut up! I'm not a coward!" Malfoy's face was red and contorted in anger. His wand was clenched tightly in his hand and next to him his two cronies had drawn their wands too.

Harry prepared himself for any hexes that would start flying his way. Every muscle in his body tensed up to be ready to dodge the next curse that came flying his way, but they didn't came. It seemed like Malfoy was indeed very hesitant about attacking someone in the face.

"Why should I shut up? Are you going to attack me again? Real sporting, three against two!"

"I don't need them! I can fight you easily on my own!"

"It certainly doesn't look like it!" Neville retorted.

Malfoy's eyes narrowed and a haughty look formed on his face. "You think you can take me?" Malfoy sneered. "Why don't you prove it, then? I challenge you to a Wizarding Duel. Wands only. Tonight at midnight in the Trophy Room."

_What's a Wizarding duel? _he asked Ginny.

"Fine! I'll be there! Harry will be my second," Neville said before Ginny could answer Harry.

Harry looked at Neville with his mouth hanging open, unable to form coherent thoughts. What happened with the timid and shy Neville Longbottom that came to Hogwarts? Yesterday he hardly dared to open his mouth and went out of his way to avoid Malfoy and his cronies in the hallways. Today however he stood eye to eye with his nemesis with his head held high. Harry had never seen him so … confident before.

"Fine. Crabbe will be mine. Don't be late, Potty!" Malfoy turned around and left, Crabbe and Goyle trailing behind him.

Harry let out a breath. They had avoided a serious fight, but it seemed like there was another coming, if he had interpreted the conversation correctly.

"What's a Wizarding duel?" he asked again, out loud now.

"It's an old way to settle disputes between Wizards, but nobody uses it any more," Neville answered, starting to continue his way to the Great Hall. "At least not officially. It's a duel between two wizards and you can only use spells to win. It ends when one of the two gives up or can't fight anymore."

_You're not going to fight, Harry!_ Ginny said sternly in his mind.

_But Neville …_

_Please, Harry, don't! You only know my Bat-Bogey Hex to fight with._ She was silent for a moment, before she said in a small voice, _I don't want you to get hurt._

_I can't back out, Gin. I can't let Neville go alone tonight._

It was hard for him to deny Ginny anything when she used her pleading voice, but in this he wouldn't back down. It looked like Neville was going no matter what and Harry just couldn't let he couldn't let him face Malfoy alone. Neville was his friend and you didn't abandon your friends. Besides, someone needed to put that arrogant little git in his place. If they didn't show tonight, they would seem like cowards and Malfoy would seem … justified in his actions and would only become harder to deal with. Harry voiced all these thoughts to Ginny and reluctantly she agreed with his view.

_Just be careful, Harry._

_I will. I promise._

Arriving in the Great Hall as Harry was making his promise, Harry and Neville headed over to their house table to sit down by Ron and Hermione. Suddenly feeling quite hungry, Harry quickly filled his plate and began eating. Though, after a few bites he remembered something from the conversation with Malfoy.

"Hey Neville, what did you mean exactly when you said I was your second?"

"Oh. Just that you take over when I die," Neville answered casually. He continued to eat as if he'd just made a comment on the weather and failed to see the shocked look on Harry's face.

"What are you talking about?" Ron interrupted. Then his eyes widened in realisation. "You've got a duel? With who?"

"Malfoy," Harry and Neville said together.

A look of glee and anticipation formed on the face of the redhead. "No way! Can I come too? I want to see you kick that little git's arse."

Neville shrugged. "Sure."

"You really shouldn't, Neville. You'll get Gryffindor into trouble," Hermione interrupted the conversation, looking very worried. Harry hadn't even noticed her sitting two seats to his left.

"Shut up, Hermione," Ron said harshly.

"So you know how to duel, then?" Harry asked curiously, steering the conversation away from a possible fight.

"I've never done it before but I know a few spells from my father's books. He was a very famous Auror, you know," Neville stated proudly.

_A wizard 'peliceman',_ Ginny prompted without Harry having to ask.

_Thanks. It's a policeman by the way, Gin_, Harry replied with an internal grin.

_Right.__That's what I meant._

"What spells do you know?" Hermione asked interested. Harry couldn't tell if the interest was out of concern or out of her insatiable thirst for knowledge.

Neville scrunched up his face in concentration, obviously trying hard to remember the spells. "I only know a few. Er … '_Expelliarus'_ is one. And '_Protecto_'. And -"

"Those are not even the correct incantations, Neville," Hermione interrupted sighing. "How can you ever expect to win?"

"Really?" Neville answered paling. "Can you teach me the right incantations?" His voice was small again and his face pale. Any confidence he showed just a few minutes ago was gone again.

"No, I won't teach you. I won't help you breaking the rules," she said with her arms crossed.

"Come on, Hermione. Please," Neville begged. "I have to go tonight, Hermione. If I don't, Malfoy will only get worse."

"But…"

"You know what? If you're not gonna help us, Hermione, then beat it," Ron interrupted her rudely. "Don't you have some studying to do somewhere else than here?"

Hermione huffed and stalked away angrily.

_Leave it to my brother to be the world's biggest prat! _Ginny said angrily. Harry wholeheartedly agreed with her but refrained from voicing his opinion out loud. He could try to knock some manners in Ron later. Right now, he needed the redhead. Without Hermione helping them, the task to prepare Neville for the duel fell to him and Ron. Neville would need all the help he could get if he had any intentions to win tonight.

* * *

Luckily for Harry - and Neville - today's Defence Against the Dark Arts was a self study class. Not caring about the reason, Harry had dived into reading his text book. Though, instead of reading chapter five, which discussed the Jelly-Legs Jinx, as they had been instructed to do, Harry had, instead, skimmed through the later chapters looking for spells to use that evening. Sadly, he discovered the book was full of unusable theories and discussions on the Dark Arts and Dark Creatures and only had very few spells that would actually be useful. Still by the end of the class he was able to find three that would be dead useful in a duel, including the two that Neville had mentioned incorrectly earlier: '_Expelliarmus', 'Stupefy' _and '_Protego'._

Then once he had those spells identified, he, Ron and Neville took advantage of any spare moment that afternoon and evening to duck into empty classrooms in an attempt to learn the spells. By the time they had to call it quits for curfew, Neville had managed to obtain, after three tries, a decent '_Expelliarmus,'_ but his stunner still only made Harry a little woozy when he was hit and his shield barely managed to deflect the simple Jelly-Legs Jinx they had learned today.

It didn't look all that bright for Neville. Harry actually managed to beat him quite easily when they held a mock duel, even though Harry hadn't even practiced casting the spells. His stunner managed to knock out Neville after only thirty seconds of fighting. Neither he nor Ron knew how to dispel it, though, so they had to wait for the spell to wear off. In the meantime Harry and his friend decided to hold a mock duel themselves, again ending in a win for Harry. Ginny's Bat-Bogey Hex had Ron squirming on the ground for five minutes, much to the redhead's dismay.

"She taught you that one?" Ron asked when the slimy bats had finally disappeared. His eyes were wide and a little jealous. "She steadfastly refused to teach me that one when I asked. Can you teach me?"

_Of course I refused,_ Ginny said in his mind. _And don't you dare teaching him. I don't want my weapons to be used against me._

Harry shrugged. "Yeah, she did and no I can't teach you. She didn't want you to know that one."

"What? Why?"

"Something about not wanting her weapons used against her."

Ron didn't know how to respond to that so he just held his tongue.

_Can I teach Neville?_ Harry asked. _He could sure use it tonight._

Ginny contemplated that for a few moments before finally agreeing. _But only him! And tell him not to teach anyone else!_

* * *

And so, at ten minutes to midnight, the three boys pushed open the portrait whole and set out to set Malfoy straight. But before all of them had exited the common room, they were stopped in their tracks by the bossy voice of Hermione. 

"Neville, really, don't go. You're going to be in so much trouble. You're going to get expelled." The three boys ignored her and just kept walking. Hermione hastened to keep up. "Come on, Harry. Nothing good can come of this."

_She's a persistent little witch, isn't she? _Ginny commented dryly.

"Hermione, nothing you say can convince me not to go. This is something I have to do," Harry let out a deep sigh. The three boys sped up their pace and Hermione finally stopped following.

"I'm … I'm going to tell Percy!" she called after them.

That stopped Ron. He turned around to face the bushy-haired girl, the points of his ears bright red, a clear sign of danger. "Why?" he growled. "So you can get us into real trouble? Just mind your own business and leave us alone!"

Hermione flushed in anger, but held her tongue and stalked back to the common room.

"Finally," Ron muttered.

Harry sighed deeply, but started walking again in the direction of the trophy room. Hermione was annoying, true, but that was still no reason for Ron to treat her like that. Maybe he would have a talk with his friend later. But not now, he had a duel to attend.

As they descended the long staircases in silence, Harry nerves began to increase. He had no idea how the duel would go tonight. Malfoy had shown that he knew a few spells that they had not already learnt in Quirrel's class. The boy had probably received some magical training from his father, which gave him a distinct advantage. Neville did have a chance to win, but a lot depended on luck. Neville had gained a bit more control over the spells over the course of the evening, but he was far from a decent dueller. At least with Ginny's bat-bogey hex in his spell arsenal he had a decent ace up his sleeve. That was a very easy hex to master, but its effects were utterly devastating. A hit with that one guaranteed your loss. It was impossible to do anything with those giant slimy bats growing out of your nose and attacking your face.

While Harry was contemplating each dueller's chances on victory, the trio was closing in on their destination. They turned a corner and were now only one corridor away from the Trophy Room.

"Pssst! Potter!"

"What? Who's there?" Harry asked twisting in the direction of the noise, startled by the whisper coming from the shadows behind a statue.

"There's no need for those wands, boys," said the voice. The owner stepped out of the shadows, hands up and no wand in sight. Harry recognised him immediately and lowered his wand. Neville did the same beside him, but Ron kept his wand trained.

"What are you doing here?" he practically hissed at the Slytherin in front of him, moving a bit closer to the dark-skinned boy.

"Relax, Weasley. I'm not here to curse you or anything," Zabini said with a small chuckle. "I'm here to warn you."

"What for?" Harry asked curiously.

"Malfoy is not coming; never planned to actually."

_The coward!_Ginny said with a little venom in her voice.

"WHAT?" Ron shouted, his eyes wide.

Harry elbowed him hard in the ribs and glared at his friend. "Keep your voice down, Ron. Do you want us to get caught?"

"Actually, that is what Malfoy is planning. I heard him bragging about it in the common room. He told Filch somebody would be in the Trophy Room at midnight. I expect he's hiding somewhere in there," Zabini said, pointing his thumb over his shoulder at the door that led to the Trophy Room.

"He's lying! Don't trust him, Harry. He's a Slytherin!" Ron harshly whispered.

Rolling his eyes at the stupid generalisation Ron had just had made, Harry ignored the comment and focused on Zabini. "Why are you doing this, Zabini?" Harry asked, not suspiciously but genuinely curious. "I mean, you're taking a big risk just to warn us."

"Isn't it obvious?" the boy said with a raised eyebrow and a smile playing around his lips. "Now you owe me a favour of course!"

"Don't listen, Harry! I bet he's just trying to keep us away from Malfoy!" Ron's voice was slowly rising again.

"I hear them! They're here, my sweet!" sounded suddenly from inside the Trophy Room. "Let's get them, Mrs. Norris! Oh, they'll be in so much trouble." Filch sounded in high spirits, probably due to the fact he would get to punish several out of bed students.

The four students stood frozen for a couple of seconds, before Harry snapped out of it and yelled "RUN!" on top of his lungs. Stirred to action by Harry's yell, they sprinted as fast as their legs could carry them back to where they had come from. Passing by the entrance to the dungeons, Zabini turned and headed down, shouting a goodbye as he went.

Mrs. Norris was following the three remaining kids on their heels, meowing loudly as they went, while in the distance they heard Filch cursing and puffing in his pursuit.

Reaching the third floor with Mrs. Norris still close on their heels, meowing loudly and a cursing, huffing, and puffing Filch not far behind, Ron randomly chose one of the corridors to head down. Instantly realizing what Ron was running to, Harry quickly reached forward and grabbed Ron by his collar and forcibly pushed the redhead in the other direction. They kept running until they finally lost the old cat on the stairs between the fifth and the sixth floor, where she forgot to jump one of the trick steps. Neville forgot too, but he had two friends with him who pulled him out in record time. Puffing and sweating they arrived at the portrait whole.

"Fortuna … puff … Major," Harry managed to say between gasps for breath. The Fat Lady looked disapprovingly but swung open without comments. The three hurried in the common room and collapsed in the comfortable seats.

"That was close," Ron breathed in relief the moment he sat down. The other two were just too winded to speak.

_I've been running around this castle way too often,_ he thought to Ginny. _I might actually find myself with some endurance by the end of the year if these sort of things keep happening._

_I have a feeling that Hogwarts is not going to be boring next year with you around. _

_Probably not._ _Problems seem to be following me, _Harry answered with a mental shrug. _Speaking about problems… I think it's time for us to plan a few pranks. I know Malfoy definitely deserves one after today and Snape still has one due._

_Good idea. Go get some sleep! We can plan in our dream tonight._

_Alright! See you in a bit!_

* * *

The following morning, Harry headed down early. He and Ginny had spent the night planning their revenge on Malfoy and Snape. Today he would prank Malfoy. Snape would have to wait a bit for his portion of marvellous punishment. He planned on enlisting the twins for that one. After all, he owed them and enlisting them for his prank on Snape seemed like an excellent payment. 

Stopping in a hallway that Malfoy was sure to use to get to breakfast, Harry hid behind one of tapestries. He didn't have to wait very long. Ten minutes later, Malfoy, flanked by Crabbe and Goyle, walked past his hiding place, speculating loudly about the amount of punishment that Harry and his friends had received.

_Time for the prank, Gin!_

Taking a moment, Harry reviewed what he had learned from a Transfiguration lesson from a little over a week ago. In that lesson he had learned the more complex version of the colour changing charm. Not only did it colour the surface of the object, but it could also create patterns and drawings in different colours. He concentrated fully on what he wanted to create and took careful aim at Malfoy from behind the tapestry.

"_Muta__Colori Complexi_" he whispered when he had a good shot, performing the spell flawlessly. He shot two more; one at Crabbe and one at Goyle. He had to suppress a laugh when he saw the results so he wouldn't get heard. Then turning towards the wall he cast a few jelly-legs jinxes on the wall to clean his wand - a tip from the twins; apparently there was a charm that could tell the last spells that were performed - and stowed the wand in his pocket. Taking a short moment to hide the memory of the prank, Harry made sure nobody was in the hallway before leaving his hiding place and hurried to breakfast himself, making sure to take a different route then Malfoy.

Wanting to be in the Great Hall before Malfoy so as to not miss anything, Harry ran all the entire way. Entering the Great Hall, he noted that he had achieved his goal and had indeed arrived before Malfoy. He headed over to join Ron and Neville, who were already sitting at the table. Not a minute later, Malfoy walked in. His eyes locked with Harry, who smiled and threw him a wink. Malfoy looked confused for a few moments, but shook it off and moved to sit down at the Slytherin table.

Then someone sniggered at the Hufflepuff table, which was mirrored quickly by a few others. The laughter grew and not long after almost the entire Hall had joined in. Malfoy was looking around to see what they were laughing at, but flushed when he discovered that he was the object of their mirth. He looked down at his robes, but could not see anything out of the ordinary, but still everyone was pointing and laughing. Unbeknownst to him, though, on his back was written 'I AM A COWARD!' in large, bright red letters. The robes of his bodyguards had been changed in a similar fashion, only their robes said 'HE IS A COWARD' in bright yellow letters with an arrow underneath pointing at Malfoy. While Harry knew that Malfoy would instantly know who had pranked him, once he saw the letters that is, Harry didn't care one bit. It would only add to the insult if Harry got away with it.

"On your back, Malfoy!" one of the other Slytherins shouted, a small smile on his face as well.

Goyle, who was sitting next to the victim, looked and explained the situation to his friend, which set the blonde boy in a rage. "Potter!" Malfoy yelled, his face contorted in rage. "I'm gonna get you for this!" He got up from his seat and sprinted towards, drew his wand and aimed at Harry.

"Mr. Malfoy! Lower your wand immediately!" bristled McGonagall, who had come closer to examine the situation. Snape was standing behind her, looking first in disgust at the robes of Malfoy followed by a look of absolute loathing directed straight at Harry. The latter hit the hateful gaze full on and refused to look away. The fingers returned in full force, just as they had yesterday. Today however, it was very easy to keep the metal ball away from the professor.

Once again, Snape looked confused and questioning at the small, thin boy with the lightning bolt scar. In the meantime, McGonagall had returned Malfoy's clothes to their normal state.

"Give me your wand, Potter!" Snape scowled.

Harry threw a quick questioning look at his head of house. She nodded curtly, so Harry handed it over, sure she wouldn't make him do anything that would be bad for him.

"_Priori Incantatem!"_ Snape said in a clear but venomous voice. Misty shapes came out of the tip of the wand, each one of them a pair of wobbling legs.

"What are you doing, sir?" Harry asked, plastering a confused look on his face. It was a good thing the twins had warned him about this spell, otherwise he would still be in big trouble by now.

Snape just scowled and thrust the wand back at Potter. He turned around and returned to the staff table without a word.

"Why aren't you punishing him?" Malfoy called after Snape, his face furious. "He did it! I know he did!"

"That's enough, Mr. Malfoy!" McGonagall admonished. "We can't punish students without proof. Return to your seat. Now!" she added, when the boy didn't move.

Reluctantly Malfoy moved away, throwing Harry a last look of deep loathing.

_That was fun!_ Harry said, a grin forming on his face.

_I wish I could have seen that, _Ginny answered a bit wistfully.

_Just wait until next year. You'll get to prank him yourself._

Turning his attention to his plate, Harry realized that he hadn't begun to eat yet. Deciding to rectify that, he loaded his plate with eggs and bacon and started eating, not noticing the way Ron and Neville were looking at him.

"Hey, Harry," Neville said suddenly beside him. "Did you do it?"

"Er. What?" Harry answered, startling out of his daydreams.

"Did you do that prank on Malfoy?"

Harry looked from Neville to Ron and back with a smile on his face. "Maybe, maybe not. But it was appropriate, wasn't it?" he asked, looking sideways to Neville. The latter just grinned in response. Harry decided to throw in a hint about his next prank. "And if you think that was funny, just wait until Hallowe'en."

"What are you on about?" Ron asked curiously.

Harry's smile grew. "Not tellin', but it will be spectacular!"

* * *

Life in the school was settling down. The newness of the magic of Hogwarts was slowly wearing off, the new students were adjusting at life in the castle and most of the first-years were finally getting familiar with the layout of the vast building. This meant a lot less hurrying from one place to another to be on time in the classes. Halfway through October, Harry was ecstatic to have made it through an entire week without getting lost once. 

But a greater familiarity with the castle was not the only thing improving the life of Harry and his friends. It seemed like Snape had been put on a short leash by Dumbledore. Since that one day in the beginning of October, Snape hasn't said a single word to Harry. He had barely even acknowledged the boy's presence in his classroom. Harry didn't mind one bit. It was a definite improvement over the constant stream of insults from before. Not only that, but the sabotages seemed to have stopped. His cauldron hadn't exploded once since over the last weeks. Another plus was that it seemed to infuriate Snape when he couldn't find anything wrong with what Harry had brewed, so Harry took great pleasure in handing in a perfect potion at the end of each lesson.

The days flew by at Hogwarts and before he realised it was October the 31st. The whole school was eagerly anticipating the Hallowe'en feast of that evening. The expectations were high. The twins had told stories about huge flocks of fluttering bats flying around in the great hall and jack-o-lanterns the size of Hagrid. Everyone was enthusiastic and elated to celebrate this day. In the Wizarding world, this was the day on which the wizards and witches celebrated the fact that they had magic in their blood. The events ten years ago only added to the importance of the day.

To Harry, however, that second reason for celebration had a more depressing personal component. Exactly ten years ago to the day his parents had died. This day always used to be one of the most terrible days of the year in his old life with the Dursleys. His uncle Vernon always made the most horrible snide remarks about his parents on this day. After all, this was the day Harry's 'good for nothing parents' got themselves killed and his uncle got burdened with their worthless freak of a son. Now Harry knew different, but the truth didn't ease his aversion of the day. It was now the day that Voldemort had killed his parents and had tried to kill him.

As he went through the day Harry was very glad that he had Ginny in his head to keep his spirits up. He didn't know how he would have been able to walk around with a smile on his face otherwise.

The day started with an incredibly boring morning, Double Defence Against the Dark Arts followed by History of Magic was not exactly a picnic. These lessons had gotten so boring, that Harry mostly couldn't remember what the lesson had been about when he exited the classroom. It seemed like Binns and Quirrel were competing to see who could get the most students asleep by the end of their lesson. If they did, than Binns was the winner by a nose length.

Luckily Charms that afternoon was far more interesting. Professor Flitwick announced that they were ready to learn the levitation charm. Harry was partnered with Neville today. Unfortunately, this left Ron and Hermione working together. They had been bickering about the smallest things ever since the night of the duel, so getting them to work together was a real challenge.

Harry had mastered the new charm after six or seven tries, but most of the others were having quite a bit of trouble getting their feather to float. He was helping Neville with it, while Hermione was trying to correct Ron how to do it. Of course she did this in her typical manner.

"Please, Ron. You're doing it all wrong," she said with a theatrically big sigh. "First of all, it's not 'Leviossa', it's 'Leviooosa', with a nice and long 'ooo'. And secondly, your wand movements are completely off. It's a swish and a flick." She raised her wand and swished and flicked it saying, '_Wingardium Leviosa_' and sure enough her feather rose in the air. Ron just huffed and refused to say another thing for the entire lesson.

After the lesson Ron came to Harry to complain. "Who does she think she is? She's horrible. Honestly! 'It's not 'Leviossa', it's 'Levioooooosa''. Please! No wonder she doesn't have any friends."

However, before Harry could respond to Ron's comment, he was hit by someone who passed him in a hurry and was startled to see Hermione in tears. "I think she heard you. That was rude, mate!"

_Go after her already if she's crying! _Ginny said a bit exasperated.

_Really?_ he said sceptically, but left Ron standing alone anyway. _What do I do when I find her?_

_Comfort her. Like you do when I feel bad. Maybe give her a hug or something. You'll figure it out._

Following Ginny's instructions, Harry ran around a corner just in time to see Hermione run into the girls' bathroom. He hesitated for a moment outside, but when he saw no one coming out, he decided to enter.

"Eh - Hermione?" he called out. He heard a stifled sob coming from one of the cubicles. "Are you in here?" he asked softly at the door.

"Go away!" she yelled.

Harry took a deep breath and stayed where he was. "I'm sorry about Ron. He acted like a real prat. I think he's jealous of you."

_I think you're right, Harry, _Ginny agreed. _He always acts like that when someone can do something better than he can. The curse of living with five older brothers, I guess._

"Jealous? You think he's rude because he's jealous? What do you think he's jealous about? That I don't have any friends?" She was practically screaming now.

"No, that you're smarter than he is," Harry responded calmly. "Come on. Come out of there. We can go for a walk on the grounds."

"You shouldn't waste your time on me, Harry," she sobbed. "Just go and leave me alone."

"I don't consider this wasted time. My friends are more important to me. Now come on out of there."

Harry then waited patiently for Hermione to respond. He was rewarded a few minutes later when he heard her blowing her nose loudly and she finally came out. Her eyes were red rimmed, but she wasn't crying anymore.

"Come on, Hermione. Let's get out of here. There are far nicer places than a toilet to be miserable," he said with a small smile.

Seeing Hermione's slight nod at his suggestion, Harry led her out of the bathroom. The two of them walked together in silence first through the halls of Hogwarts and then outside in the autumn sun. Arriving by the lake, Harry directed Hermione to sit down under one of trees before taking a seat sat next to her.

"Feeling better?" he asked softly.

"A bit," she admitted. She was breathing normally again, but she still looked sad.

_What do I do now? _Harry asked to Ginny.

_Tell her something about yourself. Tell her something about your past or something. If you confide in her, maybe she will talk to you too._

And so he did.

"Has anyone ever told you about where I lived before I moved in with the Weasleys?" he asked her. She shook her head in denial. "Well, after my parents died, ten years ago to the day, I was left with my relatives: My Uncle Vernon, Aunt Petunia and their son Dudley. They are Muggles and know almost nothing about the magical world. Maybe my Aunt does, because she's my mum's sister and my mum was a witch, but she never told me anything about it, so I don't know for sure. Anyway, they hate everything that was magic. That included me. I was barely more than a slave around there. They made me clean the house, do the dishes, prepare breakfast and everything else that I was big enough to do."

He sighed and continued his story. "Whenever something strange happened, they always suspected me and every time something happened, they punished me, even if I didn't think I had anything to do with it. Of course, most of the time it was me, even if I didn't know it back then. They had this cupboard under the stairs, barely big enough to hold their brooms. They had made a bed in there and their favourite punishment was locking me up. I must have spent half my life in there." Harry took a deep breath and concentrated a few moments so he wouldn't get upset too.

"I finally had enough of it last June and I ran away. I don't know how Dumbledore found out I left the Dursleys, but somehow he did. He took me to the Weasleys and they've adopted me a few days later. I was a mess when I arrived there. Ginny, Ron's sister, single-handedly pulled me out of my depression and I've been quite happy ever since."

They were silent for a few minutes, looking at the giant squid who was trying to catch some of the late autumn sunrays.

"You have a hard time making friends, don't you?" Harry finally asked Hermione. He had been sitting with this question in his mind for a few minutes now and Ginny had finally convinced him to ask her.

Hermione nodded. "They always see me as this smart, nerdy girl that's always carrying lots of books around." She gave a miserable chuckle. "They're right, too."

"Maybe a bit," Harry admitted. He had talked about this with Ginny a few nights ago when he had seen Hermione sitting alone in the common room, so he was fairly sure what the real problem was. "That's not the main reason you don't have many friends, though." He paused for a moment looking for the correct words, which were finally supplied by Ginny. "I think they're … intimidated by you."

"What do you mean, intimidated?" she asked confused.

"Well, you always know the answer to every question that's asked in class. Your hand is always the first in the air. Now, I don't mind that, but others have a harder time accepting that. Some think you're acting that way because you're boasting about how smart you are. They think you're rubbing it in that you're smarter than they are."

"I don't…"

"I know that," he interjected quickly, "but can't you see how they could think that?"

Hermione looked thoughtfully.

"I think that's why Ron reacted so rudely today. He was having a hard time doing the charm and then you showed him how to do it and made it look like it was the easiest thing in the world. He was rude, I know. I'm only explaining why he became irritated."

"Is that really what it looks like? That I'm trying to show everyone else that I'm smarter than them?" she asked softly.

"Sometimes, and it doesn't help that you _are_ smarter than all of them," he said with a small smile.

"So you say I should change?"

"No, you shouldn't. You're a nice person and you shouldn't change who you are for anyone. But you can tone it down a bit."

"How?" She wasn't looking sad anymore. Her face looked like she was trying to get a solution to a problem in class.

Harry thought a bit. "It's just little things. Like when you raise your hand in class, don't try to reach the ceiling in your enthusiasm. It's not a shame if the teacher asks someone else for the answer. And don't be that obsessed by rules. Rules are important, but not a matter of life and death. And maybe you should try to change the way you talk to others a bit."

"What do you mean?" she asked genuinely interested.

"Er… When you talk to someone, you just say thing after thing after thing. It's all facts. It's really hard to follow a conversation like that."

"What do I say, then?"

He ran his hand through his hair while he pondered on the answer. "Just ask them a question about something the other is interested in. They will answer it and then you can say something about the answer or ask a new question about it. Just like you're doing right now."

"But you're doing all the talking," she said confused.

"Just try. It will get better."

She nodded and was silent for a bit, contemplating what Harry had told her. Harry looked at his watch and saw that it was only two hours before the feast was going to begin. He still had to find the twins to prepare for the prank tonight.

"Come on, let's go back." Harry stood up and held his hand out to pull her up.

"Thanks, Harry," she said softly.

"Anytime, Hermione. And don't let Ron get to you. He'll see you for the great person you are eventually. He just is a bit thick."

_You're not flirting with her, are you Mr. Potter?_ Ginny said playfully.

_Of course not._ _It was just a compliment. There's only one witch that I enjoy flirting with, Miss Weasley, _he answered.

_And who might that be?_

_Professor McGonagall, of course,_ he laughed.

_HEY! _she said in a mock offended voice, followed by a chuckle. _I thought you meant my mum, though._

_Ouch! Painful,_ he cringed. _Seriously now: you're the only one I would even consider flirting with, Gin._

_Thanks, Harry! Same here. By the way, that was a good thing you did with Hermione._

* * *

"Ah, there's our little adoptive brother!" 

Fred and George were waiting impatiently at the portrait hole when Harry walked in with Hermione. He said goodbye to Hermione, promising to pick her up before dinner that evening and turned to the twins. They were both smiling evilly.

"You're late!" stated Fred.

"We were afraid you had gotten cold feet!" George added.

"But apparently you were out with a girl!"

"I wonder what our Ginny would have to say about that."

_That I'm proud of you with the way you comforted Hermione, of course,_ Ginny giggled.

Harry rolled his eyes. "It was nothing like that, guys. Do you have everything?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Yep, I've got the potion!" Fred confirmed holding up a vial of clear liquid.

"And I've got the charms written down and in my pocket." George said.

"Okay, then let's go!"

Fred headed to the kitchen to spike Snape's drink, while George and Harry headed to the Great Hall.

Just before they reached the entrance hall, George pulled Harry behind a tapestry and eyed him with the most serious look he could. "Harry, boy. I'm about to induct you in the secret of our pranking success. We, Fred and I that is, have never shown this to anyone and we would appreciate your secrecy. Can we count on that?"

Harry, curious as he was, agreed of course.

"Good. Behold … '_The Marauders Map'_," George said theatrically, pulling an old piece of parchment out of his pocket and gave it to Harry.

"Er… George? There's nothing on here," Harry observed after he unfolded it.

"Of course not! We can't have just anyone reading it, can we?" George tapped his wand to the parchment and said, "_I solemnly swear I'm up to no good."_ Instantly lines formed and the layout of the castle became visible.

"WOW!" Harry exclaimed loudly.

"Cool, isn't it?"

_What is it? What is it?_ Ginny asked extremely curious.

Harry didn't want to keep any secrets from Ginny, even if her brother had made him promise. After all, she was part of him. So he relayed quickly what he saw.

_That's amazing!_ she exclaimed.

_Yeah, it is. No wonder they know all those secret passages._

"Good, there's no one in the Great Hall. Are you ready, Harry?" George asked. "Good. Wipe the map!"

"Er… What?"

"Oh, yeah._Mischief managed!_" George said, tapping his wand to the parchment again. "Let's go!"

They entered the Great Hall and quickly crossed it to the staff table.

"Ok. Here's Snape's seat," the redhead said, stopping at one of the seats. "I'll cast the charms. You keep an eye on the map."

Harry activated the map again, while George started casting the specialized charms and spells. They had spent a lot of time researching for this prank over the course of the last month. If they could pull it off, the results would be hilarious. He only hoped the time-delay on the charms would be enough.

"Done!" George said happily.

"McGonagall is on the way," Harry whispered urgently, pointing at the map. "I don't think we'll reach the entrance hall in time."

George threw a quick look at the map. "Right. This way." He dragged Harry through a door that led to a side chamber and walked over to an apparently empty wall. He knocked on it three times and a doorway appeared. "We've got to hurry," George whispered, looking on the map one more time before wiping it. "The staff room is behind this door. It's empty now, but Snape's on the move." He threw open the door and sprinted through the room with Harry right behind him. Not two seconds after they had exited the room and closed the door behind them and Snape walked around the corner, robes billowing behind them.

Both Harry and George plastered an innocent look on their face and walked as calmly as possible past their least favourite teacher. Snape looked at them sneering nastily, but he didn't say anything. The two boys held their features under control until they were out of hearing range and burst out laughing. They had done it. The charms were in place. Hopefully Fred was just as successful. Harry bid George goodbye and left to spend the time until the feast with Ron, Neville and Hermione if he could find her.

* * *

"What are you so nervous about?" Ron asked suspiciously. Harry had insisted to go down to the feast a bit early and now him, Ron, Neville and - to Ron's annoyance - Hermione were waiting for the rest of the school to arrive. He could hardly sit still in his seat and kept glancing at the staff table, even though nobody was there yet. 

"Nothing. Nothing at all," Harry answered a little too quickly.

"They did a great job decorating the hall," Neville remarked, drawing attention away from Harry. He was right. They were amazing. Thousands of live bats flew over their heads in thick black clouds, weaving in and out of the many huge jack-o-lanterns floating above the tables.

"Yeah, it's every bit as brilliant as my brothers told me," Ron answered with a smile. "I only hope those stay in their webs." He looked a bit nervously at the large spiders that were sitting in huge webs all over the walls.

"I'm sure they will," Harry said, sharing a small smile with Hermione. Ron's fear of spiders was legendary ever since he knocked over three students in Herbology trying to get away from a spider barely the size of Knut.

The four of them chattered pleasantly while the other students filed in. Harry's nervousness grew as the first teachers started coming in. Any minute now, Snape would arrive and then it was show-time.

Then there he was, walking in with his trademark arrogant stride, his robes billowing behind him.

_This is it, Gin,_ Harry said nervously to his friend. _He's__here._

By now, almost everyone was here. Snape was a creature of habit as Harry had observed over the past weeks. He always sat down on the same chair at every meal and the first thing he did at dinner was to pour himself a large glass of wine. It was this that spurred the twins to add the potion to the prank. Snape downed the glass in one large gulp.

_Any minute now, _Harry thought, his eyes fixed on Snape. A few seats away from him Fred and George were doing the same.

"Harry? Harry!" Ron said, waving his hand in front of his eyes.

"Ron! Not now!" Harry said, swatting the hand away.

"Why? What's going on?"

"Later, Ron!"

And then it happened. A loud crack sounded in the Great Hall. As one, all heads turned to the staff table and everyone fell silent. Snape was barely recognisable in his changed outfit. The spells clearly had done their job. The Potions master's midnight black robes were transfigured to resemble an orange Muggle outfit: shorts and a sleeveless shirt. His pale skin stood out sharply against the bright colour of his clothes. This combined with the carved pumpkin now covering his head made for a thoroughly ridiculous appearance. Snape's cold black eyes were scowling through the eyeholes and his large hooked nose peaked through another.

Everybody was staring at the Potions master in shocked silence. This was a definite first. Nobody had pranked Snape before in known Hogwarts History. Even the staff didn't know how to react to this event. McGonagall's face was switching between a scowl and something that could be amusement, but Harry was sure he was imagining it. Flitwick had a large smile on his face. Dumbledore was looking mildly interested, but his eyes were twinkling merrily. Harry was still waiting for the apotheosis of the prank: Snape had yet to speak.

A crack opened in the pumpkin where Snape's mouth would be and an evil laugh, strongly resembling Peeves cackle, escaped from it. Snape slapped his hands to his mouth in horror. He tried to speak again with the same result. Now the students broke out in laughter. Nobody, not even the Slytherins, could keep themselves serious anymore. The view was just too funny. Snape glared at the students for a few more moments and strode angrily away from the staff table. The laughter never even diminished as he exited the Great Hall, slamming the doors behind him.

"That was bloody brilliant!" Ron exclaimed, when he had gathered himself again.

Harry smiled smugly at his friend.

"You wouldn't know anything about …" Neville began, but he didn't get the time to finish his sentence.

The doors of the Great swung open with a loud bang and professor Quirrel ran in the hall, looking paler than he ever had before. He started screaming.

"TROLL! TROLL! IN THE DUNGEONS!"


	7. Chapter 7: A Barking Nightmare

DISCLAIMER: This all belongs to Rowling. I'm just borrowing her creation for my own fun.

AN: Here's the newest chapter of Sparks and Flames. Hope you enjoy it. As usual I thank etj4eagle for his help. Please be so kind to leave me a review!

**Chapter 7: Barking Nightmare**

With a large bang that drew everyone's attention, the doors of the Great Hall swung open and in through the now open doors ran professor Quirrel, looking paler than he had ever before. Entering into the Great Hall, the obviously frightened professor began screaming, "TROLL! TROLL! IN THE DUNGEONS!" before he passed out.

With all of the talk and the laughter in the Great Hall stopped by the professor's unexpected entrance, the hall was deathly silent as the students took in the prone form of the Defence teacher in the middle of the hall. Then as what happened began to set in, the students began to scream and panic while they began to run for the door. It was only when professor Dumbledore conjured some loud fireworks that the students quieted again.

"Prefects! Lead your houses to your common rooms immediately," Dumbledore ordered once he had everyone's attention.

Turning his attention, along with the rest of the Gryffindors, towards their prefects Harry saw Percy squaring his shoulders in an important looking way. While Harry fell in line behind the other Gryffindors, he was still able to pick up the next orders the headmaster issued, "Minerva, Aurora! Go with the Slytherins. Make sure they get safely in their dormitories." Glancing over at the head table, Harry saw Professor McGonagall and professor Sinistra – the witch that taught Astronomy – nod and join in with the exiting Slytherins as Dumbledore turned to the other professors. "Teachers, follow me to the dungeons."

All this was said with so much authority that nobody even hesitated to follow the orders given. This was such a shrill contrast with the ever important feeling Percy, who was happy to flaunt his authority, but could hardly get anyone to listen to him and as proof, Harry could hear Percy trying to make himself heard over all the noise.

"Gryffindors! Follow me in an orderly fashion! There's no need to panic! Follow me!"

_Percy is in his element_, Harry commented. _He just loves to boss people around, doesn't he?_

_You're telling me,_ Ginny answered bitterly. _I've been living with him for ten years. It's enough to drive anyone barmy._

Harry and his friends followed at the end of the long line of students streaming out of the Great Hall behind the prefects.

"How did a troll get in the castle?" Neville asked Harry, Ron, and Hermione as they started ascending the stairs.

"I don't know," Hermione answered frowning. "I've read about them. They're supposed to be really stupid. I doubt they can get in the castle without help."

"You think someone let it in?" Harry stated more than asked as they reached the second floor and began up another flight of stairs.

Any answer that Hermione might have given was caught off by a loud scream from Ron; one that sounding very much like one that a scared little girl might give. Turning to look at Ron, they and the rest of the Gryffindors saw that the redhead was deadly pale and pointing wide-eyed to something on Harry's right. Harry turned to the source of Ron's distress and what he saw then stopped his heart from beating for a few seconds. There, growling angrily from the entrance of the forbidden corridor on the third floor, stood a very familiar creature. In fact, Harry and Hermione had encountered it just a little over a month ago. Its three heads all had their fangs bared and the left one licked its lips expectantly. He was probably craving for some nice, fresh Gryffindor students. So focused as everybody was on the mouths, nobody noticed the body lying behind the dog.

Instant panic followed. The Gryffindors quickly began running in every which direction in an attempt to get themselves to safety. The bulk of the students were already on the stairs leading to the fourth floor and therefore were able to continue along their original route. However, a good number of the students, including Harry and his friends had only just reached the third floor and couldn't follow the others without getting closer to the dangerous looking animal and, instead, randomly chose other routes.

The hellhound – as Hermione had identified it after there adventure last month – stayed stoic for a moment, watching the chaos enfolding in front of him, most likely deciding on which piece of fresh meat it wanted for dinner that evening. Then after but a few moments delay it began its pursuit, started sprinting towards the scared mass of students. Though, there was a slight additional delay when the right head decided the targets going up the stairs looked the most tasty, while the other two were focused on Harry's group, causing it to stumble. Unfortunately, for Harry's group, the heads apparently lived together in some sort of a democracy, because after a little barking amongst each other, the three heads all turned in the direction Harry was running in.

Harry ran for his life with Hermione panting heavily next to him. She began to slow down, but Harry dragged her with him as best as he could. He briefly noticed Ron doing the same with Neville. Turning suddenly into another corridor, Harry hoped to lose the hellhound. Unfortunately this proved to be the wrong choice, as they found themselves facing a dead end with the hellhound still in pursuit.

As it paused for a moment at the entrance to the corridor, the hellhound seemed to know that it had its prey trapped and its three pairs of eyes seemed to light up in triumph. Ever so slowly it crept closer, determined not to let any of its catch get away.

_Oh dear. This doesn't look good,_ Harry thought. He swallowed his fear and drew his wand. He saw that the others were doing the same thing. Neville was standing to his left, looking pale and scared but holding his wand rather steadily. On his right Hermione was shaking so hard it was a miracle she didn't drop hers. Ron next to her was looking paler than Harry ever remembered seeing him and it made his freckles stand out starkly. The others – a few second and third-years – were all in varying states of fear and panic, but still each had his wand pointed at the approaching beast. A few were firing spells at the animal but they caused no reaction whatsoever from the giant beast. Nobody knew spells powerful enough to tackle an animal this size.

_What's going on? Please tell me you're ok. I can't loose you. Tell me what's happening! _

Ginny's mental voice was alternating between concerned, whimpering and demanding, but right now it was not something Harry could deal with. _Gin! Unless you know a spell to take out a huge hellhound, shut up! _It was a bit rude on Harry's behalf, but that was the least of his worries now.

She was silent for a few seconds, before saying, _Can you do what you did last time?_

He supposed it was worth a try. It wouldn't stop the animal, but maybe it could be slowed down long enough for the teachers to arrive.

"Everybody! The strongest '_Lumos_' you can when I say so." He waited a few seconds to let them prepare and was pleased to see that everyone was concentrating. "NOW!"

Ten different wands lighted up at once casting a very bright beam of light on the dog. Harry shielded his eyes with his left hand and looked through his fingers at the effect of the combined spell. The predator recoiled howling, blinking its six eyes rapidly, but it only bought the Gryffindors about fifteen seconds. It roared angrily and advanced once again on the students, a little faster this time.

"I think you pissed it off," Ron swallowed as the hellhound got closer and closer.

And then it pounced. Harry barely managed to avoid the fangs of the left head, while the middle one had opted to skull bash Hermione. Before she was hit however, Ron came out of nowhere and pushed her to the side, taking the brunt of the attack himself. He flew backwards and smacked loudly against the wall and moved no more.

Harry awkwardly came out of a roll and started shooting every spell he knew at the creature. _Stupefy_ did nothing and he couldn't really expect_Expelliarmus _to work, but he shot it anyway. He had to do something after all. Right now, two of his best friends were well within biting range of the hungry creature. Harry continued shooting spell after spell. He barely noticed doing the others just the same thing around him, but nothing they did seemed to have the slightest effect.

But then one of the heads was suddenly producing a lot of small slimy bats from its nose. In a very familiar looking way, they started attacking the head that was hit. It successfully distracted the dog from the attack and it was only then that Harry recognised the Bat-Bogey hex.

_Of course.__How could I forget about that one? Nice one, Neville!_

He concentrated on the spell and quickly shot half a dozen of them in rapid succession. He managed to hit the closest head. In the meantime, Neville had managed to hit the third and last head and by now the hellhound was starting to panic, as nothing it did was having any effect on the ferocious little things. The dog bit at the bats, shook its heads around and swiped with his paws at the slimy creatures attacking it, none of it doing anything and then finally, in an act of desperation, the dog ran at full speed headfirst into a wall.

BANG!

The sound impact was so loud and so hard it rattled the windows throughout the whole castle. With one last loud whine, the three headed menace collapsed, defeated, and Harry and the others relaxed.

_It's down, Gin,_ he managed to think, breathing hard. _We beat it._

_Thank Merlin…_

He looked around to see how the others were.

_Oh no, Ron's hurt,_ Harry saw. Harry hurried over to his friend, panic gripping at his chest.

_What?! Is it serious?_

Ron lay slumped against a wall. Blood was pouring from a large cut above his eyebrow. His left arm seemed to be dislocated while his right – the one hit by the dog – was bent in a weird angle and a bone was protruding the skin. Harry bent closer. Still breathing.

_He's alive, but pretty banged up,_ Harry told Ginny.

"He saved me," Hermione whispered at his ear. When Harry looked at her he saw tears shining in her eyes. Her hair was all tousled – way worse than usual – and she was holding her wrist with a pained expression. She took a deep breath and pushed away her emotions. "We need to get him to the hospital wing," she stated.

"Can anyone help me here?" Harry asked addressing the others there.

One of the third years – Kenneth Harry thought the boy was called – moved closer and pointed his wand at the unconscious body of Ron. "_Molibocorpus,"_ he spoke softly and levitated the Ron past the three-headed dog and out of the hallway.

* * *

"You really jumped in front of a huge three-headed dog to save Hermione?" Fred asked unbelievingly the morning after the disastrous events on Hallowe'en.

Ron just nodded while the points of his ears turned red.

"Yes, he did," Harry said with a smile. "I'm sure he saved her life."

Madam Pomfrey had insisted that all those involved in the events stayed in the Hospital Wing for the night. Harry had welcomed the Dreamless Sleep Potion as he was sure he wouldn't be able to sleep otherwise. Luckily it didn't keep his shared dreams out, because he really needed Ginny after the traumatic experience he had gone through and she had needed his presence to reassure herself that he was okay. She was still sleeping at the moment judging from the absolute silence at her side of the link, but Harry didn't want to wake her so he kept his concentration on what was happening right now.

The twins were there visiting Ron and the others. Harry, Hermione and Neville were to be released in fifteen minutes for breakfast, while Ron had to remain under the care of Madam Pomfrey for a few more days. Percy had come with his brothers to see if his brother was ok, had said a very formal 'get well soon' and then left again, much to the amusement – and relief – of the others.

"Wow. Never thought you had it in you, Ron. Good show," George said approvingly.

"Yeah, we might actually acknowledge you as our brother from now on," Fred added with a smile.

The red on Ron's ears extended to the rest of his face and he murmured something that sounded a lot like, "Wish I could say the same," but he looked pleased nonetheless.

"What's that, little brother? I didn't quite catch that," Fred said while theatrically leaning closer.

"Nothing," Ron said quickly, before steering the conversation in a different direction. "What happened after I was knocked unconscious? Madam Pomfrey wouldn't tell me anything except that I was the only one hurt."

"Hermione was hurt too, but it was only a sprained wrist," Neville supplied. "Madam Pomfrey healed it in two seconds."

"It was really amazing that you were the only one getting hurt," Harry said while a shiver ran over his spine. He couldn't imagine losing one of his friends, now that he finally had them. "I thought we were in it for sure when that dog cornered us. Good thing Neville figured out how to tackle it."

All eyes turned to the timid boy whose blush quickly resembled Ron's. "I was just lucky," he managed to get out.

"How did you tackle that dog anyway? I thought you said it was at least ten feet tall," George asked curiously.

"He used a hex you're all quite familiar with. I believe your sister used it a few times on you, if I recall correctly," Harry said with a smile.

Fred went pale. "You don't mean -"

"- the Bat-Bogey hex?"

"Right in one. Neville managed to hit one of the heads and I saw that it was working and started shooting it too. I got one of the other heads and Neville then managed to get the last one. It got so furious at the bats that it ran headfirst into a wall, knocking itself unconscious."

"Yeah, it does make you want to do that," George shuddered. "The poor creature!"

Fred looked at Harry with a small glint of fear and a bit of envy in his eye. "She taught you, didn't she?"

Harry smiled. "Yeah, she did. But I was expressly forbidden to teach you guys, so don't even ask."

"Aaah, why not?" Fred whined. "We won't tell her and what she doesn't know -"

"Sorry, guys. No can do! I never break a promise," Harry said holding up his hands in an apologetic gesture.

"So what happened after it got knocked out?" Ron asked getting the conversation back on track.

Neville said, "That third-year – Kenneth was it?" Harry nodded his confirmation and Neville continued. "Well, Kenneth levitated you and we started walking to the Hospital Wing. But we ran into McGonagall, Sinistra and Flitwick on the stairs. They were with a bunch of seventh year Gryffindors. I think they assembled a group to warn the teachers in the dungeons."

"Yeah, they did," Fred affirmed. "We were going to go with, but they convinced us rather forcibly to stay put."

"Stunned us more likely," George growled.

"Well, we were rather persistent," Fred pointed out to his twin.

"Of course we were! It was our family in danger. We couldn't very well sit back and do nothing."

"I know, George. I was there too," Fred said with a deep sigh. He turned back to the others. "Unfortunately they wouldn't let us. Said something about it being their _responsibility -_" Fred let the word hang in the air for a few moments to express his disgust for the word"- to keep the younger students safe and with that dog and a troll on the loose…"

"Anyway," Harry said ignoring the twins and addressing Ron. "McGonagall and the seventh years left to take care of the dog and Sinistra took us to the Hospital Wing. There Madam Pomfrey did some weird spell on you that made your bone go back in your arm; it made the most horrible cracking sound by the way. And then she checked the rest of us for injuries and sent us to bed."

"And what happened to the troll?"

"I heard the teachers caught it somewhere in a toilet on the first floor. No idea what it was hoping to find there, though," Fred said shrugging.

A door opened behind them and Madam Pomfrey came in. "Alright. Everybody out that doesn't need to be here. The patient needs his rest. You can all come back after dinner tonight."

Everyone got up from there seats, said goodbye and headed out, except for Hermione who lingered a bit behind. She whispered something to Ron that Harry couldn't catch but he did hear the 'you're welcome' response from Ron. The twins went ahead while Harry and Neville waited for Hermione to catch up. She joined them shortly after and the three of them walked to the Great Hall in silence. Or at least Hermione and Neville were silent.

_Gin! Ginny! Are you awake yet? _Harry asked, no longer able to resist the urge to wake her.

_Grmbl, _she growled over the link. _I am now._

_Oh… Sorry that I woke you, _Harry said not sounding sorry at all. _We just left the Hospital wing, but Ron's still there._

_Yeah? How is he? _she asked now fully awake.

_He's just fine. Madam Pomfrey managed to mend his bones in no time. But he's still a bit sore and he has to stay there until Monday morning._

_That's good._ She was silent for a few seconds. _How do you always get in these situations?_

_I told you already. I don't know. It just happens._

_Just remember what you promised last night._

_I remember, Gin. _He remembered his promise all to well. As soon as he had fallen asleep, his dream-self had been captured in a massive hug by a small redhead that would have cracked his ribs in reality. She refused to let go for about an hour and then only after he promised – repeatedly – to try to stay out of trouble. _But it's not my fault if a troll and a hellhound suddenly run free in the school._

_It's an awfully big coincidence, isn't it? _Ginny said pensive.

_Yeah, it is,_he agreed and then he said out loud, "Don't you guys find it suspicious that a hellhound and a troll suddenly both run free in the castle on the same night?"

"A bit. It doesn't seem like a coincidence," Neville admitted. They rounded the corned and walked in the entrance hall.

"I thought about that," Hermione said. "We know that dog was guarding something. Maybe someone let the troll in as a diversion so they could steal whatever is guarded."

They sat down at the Gryffindor house table. "Could be," Harry said thoughtful. "Then the dog would have broken out when they tried to get past it. The biggest question is then whether they got it or not?"

"Not much we can do about it, now is there?" Neville shrugged. "Either they got it and they're long gone or they didn't and then Dumbledore will surely add some protections."

The others nodded and started eating they're breakfast.

"Hey, Snape's not here," Neville noted suddenly.

"Maybe he's still running around with a pumpkin on his head," Harry said with a grin. He was pretty sure that was the case. The orange clothes were easily removed, but the pumpkin was charmed to stay in place for twenty-four hours. Harry and the twins had looked for the spells to make it unvanishable and unbreakable or otherwise alterable for hours. Fred had even volunteered to test everything out the week beforehand. They found out that everything worked as it should but then of course Fred had to remain hidden in his dormitory all day. Luckily it was a Sunday, so nobody really missed him. And those that did were glad not to get pranked for a day.

"I don't think I laughed that hard in all my life as yesterday," Neville said with a nostalgic look on his face, probably picturing the prank again. "Too bad the rest of the evening wasn't as fun."

Harry shuddered slightly when the image of the hellhound flashed before his eyes, but he pushed it away forcibly and concentrated at the staff-table. There were two others missing from there. Professor Dumbledore wasn't there, but he was often away on business, so that was not out of the ordinary.

The other one was Quirrel. Harry sniggered softly. The poor guy probably still hadn't recovered from his shock yesterday. It was really a shame. He's supposed the be the Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, but he faints when a troll enters the castle. Harry would be surprised if he learned anything from the stuttering guy by the end of the year. He had learned more on his own in one day when they trained for that duel than that he learned from Quirrel so far.

When the last bits of eggs were gone from his plate, Harry excused himself to his friends. He had Quidditch practice in fifteen minutes, so he'd better be going.

* * *

That night after dinner, Harry and his friends went to visit Ron in the Hospital Wing. They weren't the only visitors there, though. A tear-stricken Hagrid was standing next to Ron's bed, begging his forgiveness for something. Harry had visited the large man a few times during his time at Hogwarts, but then Hagrid had always been smiling and cheerful. Harry really liked Hagrid and to see him in such distress hurt a bit.

"Hi, Hagrid," Harry greeted softly.

Hagrid started when he heard the voice next to him. "Oh, Hiya, Harry," Hagrid greeted weakly. "Didn't see ya there."

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked concerned.

"Wrong? I almost got ya all killed!" Hagrid said between sobs. "I should 'ave tied Fluffy better, but then he escaped an' y'almost died." His sobs increased and Hagrid was now positively howling.

The four teenagers were looking at each other a bit bewildered, not really knowing how to comfort this huge sobbing person.

"There, there, Hagrid," Hermione finally said, patting Hagrid's elbow. "We're ok and Ron will be better on Monday. No harm done."

"Yeah, Hagrid. We don't blame you. Why don't you sit down?" Harry said, guiding Hagrid to a chair.

Hagrid sat down heavily, making the chair grown under his weight. He blew his nose in a handkerchief the size of a bath towel and finally relaxed a bit. "Thanks, ya guys," he finally managed to croak.

"Don't mention it, Hagrid," Harry said, taking a chair himself. "I guess_Fluffy_ is that dog that attacked us?"

"Yeah, he is," Hagrid confirmed. "It's mine, ya know. Bought him of a Greek chappie I met in the pub las' year. Lent him to Dumbledore to guard … I shouldn't be tellin' ya this."

"What's it guarding, Hagrid?" Harry asked, his curiosity piked.

"Can' tell ya that. Top secret, that is."

"Did someone try to steal it yesterday?" Hermione pried.

"How d'ya know that?" Hagrid asked surprised.

"It's the only thing really that makes sense. A troll in the castle and er … Fluffy escaping at the same time. We thought the troll might be a diversion for whoever tried to steal whatever Fluffy was guarding."

Hagrid looked gobsmacked. "Yer too smart for yer own good. All of ya." He sighed. "Dumbledore thought the same thing, but nobody got past the other defences, so the stone – I shouln't 'ave said that." Hagrid looked horrified at what he had revealed.

"What stone?" Ron asked.

"Don't ask me any more questions. I can't tell ya anything more. What Fluffy's guarding is between Dumbledore and Flamel," he said holding his hands up.

"Who's Flamel?" Hermione asked next.

Hagrid groaned and left without another word.

* * *

That following Monday morning, Ron was released just as predicted. He had, of course, argued with Madam Pomfrey to try if she could keep him a bit longer, but when she threatened him with her wand to remove him forcibly, he grudgingly left.

"Why couldn't she keep me a few more hours?" he complained when he sat down at the breakfast table. "Then I wouldn't have to go to Potions."

Hermione immediately began to lecture him about the importance of going to lessons, but she quickly stopped after a pointed look of Harry.

Later during Potions, Harry decided that Ron definitely had had the right idea, as being in a soft bed in the Hospital Wing would be immensely better than sitting through this class. Especially today as Snape was in a really foul mood. About the only good thing was that he wasn't biased in his treatment of the students for once; he was angry at everyone. Even the Slytherins didn't escape his temper; probably because even they had laughed at the Halloween prank. Half the class left that day covered in boils. Snape had snarled a little too hard at Neville causing him to drop the Belladonna he was holding in his cauldron at a time that it really wasn't advisable.

Wood took Quidditch practice to the next level that night. The first Quidditch match of the season was coming closer and he drove his team to the limit with a gruelling four-hour practice. He promised the same treatment the coming days, so Harry's homework was sure to take a hit. This brought Harry on the verge of panicking as he was already vastly behind. About the only good thing was that the match was this coming Saturday so he could return his normal schedule before long and hopefully catch up on his neglected studies.

However, come Tuesday any thoughts about Quidditch or how behind he was following on his homework were banished by a larger concern. He had been joking around with Ron at the end of the Defence lesson and had forgotten his best quill when they were finally dismissed. Thankfully, he had remembered about it just before they got to the common room and so had doubled back for it.

Arriving at the classroom, he was about to enter it when he heard muffled voices coming from it.

"- make … punish you!" Harry heard a soft high pitched voice say.

"B-but that huge dog … . I-I … . Aaah. Stop. Ok! I'll – I'll find out!" That was the voice of Quirrel. He sounded scared, like he was being threatened.

Harry stood frozen. Should he go for help or barge in, wand drawn and try to help the poor Defence teacher?

The choice was taken out of his hands when Quirrel strode out without seeing him, his face stoic and his stride carrying a distinct limp. Harry hid quickly behind a suit of armour, waiting for the second person to come out. He was sure that first voice was a different one as Quirrel's. He waited five minutes, but nobody came out and he had to get to the mandatory study period. Carefully he pushed the door open and peeked in.

Nobody?

He entered and looked around. No, there was no one there. He could have sworn he heard two voices. Maybe he misheard.

_Gin?__Were you listening just now? _Harry asked. Maybe she heard it too.

_No. Mum's trying to teach me how to bake cookies again and I was concentrating. Why?_

_I thought I heard somebody threaten Quirrel, but he was the only one coming out of his classroom and nobody else was in it._ Harry took his quill and exited the room again.

_Maybe he apparated out,_ suggested Ginny.

_Could be, _he admitted while he was sitting down in the study room. _But I didn't hear a crack like your dad makes when he apparates. And there wasn't a fireplace, so he couldn't have flooed out._

_There are other ways to travel, you know. Portkey for example._

_I know. It just doesn't feel right._ He sighed. _Maybe I just heard wrong, but Quirrel mentioned a dog and then he got out limping. Do you think that he was the one that tried to get past that dog on Hallowe'en?_

_It could be, but didn't you say that he hardly can do any magic? _Ginny asked.

_Yeah, I did. But maybe someone forced him, _Harry speculated.

_Or like you said; you could have heard wrong._

_Probably; doesn't really matter. You get back to your cookies now so you don't mess them up, _Harry teased. He knew how she felt about cooking.

_It's not fair! I hate baking cookies, but mum is convinced I'm bored and she makes me. I'd rather follow the lessons you're having then baking these stupid things._

_At least you get to eat what you cook. I'd rather not eat what I make in Potions!_

_You know what? I'll send you a few of these if I'm finished. Then you can decide for yourself if I should eat what I make. Last time they were so hard that not even my dad's strongest cutting spell could break them. And believe me, we tried!_

_I'm sure you'll do fine this time_, he said in what he hoped was a soothing voice. His only reply was a low growl of frustration.

* * *

"You should eat something, Harry," Hermione pressed. "You'll need your strength."

"Not hungry," Harry grunted and looked at the others at the breakfast table. Not many were up yet. Today was the first match of the Quidditch season and it was Slytherin against Gryffindor. Harry was about to make his debut on the field and his stomach was turning from the nerves.

Wood had asked all the players to get up a little early so they could discuss the strategies again. Harry thought this was unnecessary, though. They had been drilling relentlessly on the tactics for weeks now. If they didn't know them by now, they would never know them.

"Ok, team. Everybody full?" Wood called out. There were grunts in response, but nobody could decipher them as either positive or negative. Wood obviously interpreted them as the former. "Great! Follow me, team!"

Reluctantly and with heavy legs Harry got up and followed the others outside. It was a cold, grey day, but luckily it wasn't raining. They changed into their Quidditch robes and Wood began a long, boring speech on tactics. The new chasers tried to pay attention, but Fred and George just closed their eyes and let Wood drone. Just as Harry was beginning to droop himself, he heard the five minute bell sounding.

"That's our cue!" Wood said excited. "Remember what I told you, everyone. Play a clean game. Slytherin will not, but we are Gryffindors! We don't need to cheat to win! We have an amazing team this year! The cup is certain to have our name on it this year. Give it your best, team and win this thing! GO GRYFFINDOR!" Wood screamed. The others roared in response.

"Mount your brooms!"

Harry mounted his Nimbus and immediately felt his nerves leaving him. Flying was easy. This was his thing. He felt confident that he could do this.

Lee Jordan, a close friend of the twins, was the commentator and was currently calling the Slytherin players as they entered onto the pitch. Harry heard the applause and the screams each time a player was called onto the field.

Next were the Gryffindors. One by one his fellow players were called onto the field until only he was remaining. The school was in for a surprise. Harry didn't know how they had done it, but the identity of the Gryffindor Seeker was still a secret at Hogwarts. He was still the secret weapon of the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

"And last, but not least! Give a huge welcome to the new Gryffindor Seeker! Our very own … HARRY POTTER!" Lee shouted to the roaring crowd. Harry flew onto the pitch with a thundering applause from the Gryffindors and an equally loud booing and whistling from the Slytherins.

Madam Hooch was standing in the middle of the pitch with the chest containing the balls. She was the referee for the game.

The two Captains gave each other a hand to pretend it was a friendly rivalry, each gripping rather harder than they were supposed too. Madam Hooch warned both teams to play fair and released the balls.

_Good luck, Harry!_ Ginny said as the game started.

_Thanks, Gin!_

"Madam Hooch releases the balls and the game is on!" Lee announced.

Harry briefly saw the snitch, before it flew out of view and the game had started. He tried to listen to the commentary, while he scanned the pitch for the snitch.

" Bell picks up the Quaffle right under the nose of Slytherin Captain Marcus Flint and passes it to Alicia Spinnet, new on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. A neat pass to Johnson who passes it immediately back. Spinnet approaches the Slytherin hoops! She's gonna shoot! No, she reverse passes it to Johnson and … GOAL! Incredible play by the Gryffindor Chasers! Captain Oliver Wood has brought an amazing trio of chasers together this year. And an attractive trio it is too."

" JORDAN !" McGonagall admonished loudly.

"Sorry, professor. Slytherin is back in possession. Nice pass to Adrian Pucey who passes it on to Flint. He shoots! Excellent safe by Gryffindor Keeper and Captain Oliver Wood. He passes it to Katie Bell. Beautiful girl, she is. I've asked her a million times, but she still won't go out with me."

" JORDAN ! KEEP TO THE PLAY!"

"Sorry, professor. Just giving a bit of background information. Ooh, nice Bludger by Fred – or George – Weasley. Who cares anyway? Bell in possession. Excellent pass to Johnson, who immediately passes it on to Spinnet. Another goal for Gryffindor!"

The crowd roared its appreciation. Gryffindor had a good start. The Chasers scored three more goals in rapid succession after brilliant passing work from the girls. Harry cheered each time they scored, but went directly back to skimming the pitch for the small, fluttering golden ball.

As the game grew longer, the play became dirtier. Gryffindor kept it fair and were rewarded with five penalties in just fifteen minutes. The score was now eighty against twenty in favour of the Gryffindors.

_Oh, no, mum,_ Ginny suddenly groaned mentally. _Not now! I'm listening to the Quidditch match._

_What is it?_Harry asked, but kept his eyes on the field.

_Mum wants to have a 'girl talk' but I want to listen to your match and obviously I can't do both at the same time._

_I'll give you a play-by-play after the match. How's that?_

_I guess I don't really have an excuse not to talk to mum. She thinks I'm just lying on my bed doing no…_

Suddenly the little golden ball passed a few feet in front of Harry.

_Oh, there's the snitch. Gotta go!_

_Good luck!_

Harry immediately tore after it. The ball went into a steep dive and Harry followed suit, flattening himself against the handle of his broomstick. Just as he was about to grasp it, his broomstick stopped in mid-dive.

The momentum carried Harry over his Nimbus and he barely managed to hang on. He tried to climb back on it, but his broomstick apparently had other ideas. It tried to shake him off each time Harry tried to swing his leg back over the handle. Hanging from his broomstick made him of course an easy target for the enemy Beaters, who knocked the Bludgers unmercifully in the direction of the young Seeker. Fred and George saw what happened just in time to protect him from the incoming balls.

The broomstick kept trying to throw him off, so Fred and Angelina started circling underneath him, obviously to try and catch him if he should fall, while George kept the Bludgers away. Nobody was playing anymore, except for Marcus Flint, who managed to score seven times without anyone noticing it. Harry managed to get back on his broom, but he still couldn't control it. Wood finally called a time-out and flew over to see what was happening. The moment the Captain asked what the problem was, the Nimbus stopped bucking just as sudden as it had started.

"It stopped, Oliver. I don't know what happened."

"Will you be able to play?" Wood asked concerned. Harry was not really sure it was concern for him or the possibility to loose his seeker for the rest of the match, but he shrugged it of. It was Wood after all; the Quidditch team was his life.

Harry tested a few easy manoeuvres. "It seems fine, so I think so."

"Ok, Harry. Just get the snitch and get it fast."

Of course in all that, the snitch had vanished without a trace.

The game began anew. Harry angrily skimmed the pitch for any sign of the golden ball. He was so close just a few minutes ago. What happened to his broomstick? It had never behaved like that before.

From the corner of his eye he saw a hint of gold glinting. He turned and indeed, there it was. Not waiting another second, he tore after the little ball at top speed with the Slytherin Seeker Terence Higgs just a few feet behind him. The Snitch zoomed across the pitch, dodging the other players on the field, but Harry kept up his pursuit. He dodged Bludgers, looped other players and finally went into a steep dive. The ground came closer and closer. Higgs pulled away a few seconds before Harry did. The Snitch levelled out a few feet above the ground and Harry pulled out of his dive, his feet skimming the grass. He reached out and his fingers grasped the Snitch.

As soon as he had the Snitch in his hands he raised his hand in triumph and flew up towards his team-mates to celebrate.

"And Harry Potter catches the Snitch earning a hundred and fifty points for Gryffindor and gives Gryffindor their first victory of the season!" Lee shouted over the screaming and applauding crowd. "The score is now three hundred and forty to a hundred and ten. Give a thundering applause for GRYFFINDOR!"

Landing, Harry was wrapped up in congratulations from Hermione, Ron and Neville, along with the rest of the team. Though, as part of their congratulations, his three friends mentioned that they had something important to tell him, but that it could wait until after the showers.

_Way to go, Harry!_ Ginny, obviously very excited about his win, screamed in his head while he was taking his shower. _I would hug you if I was there!_

_Here in the shower? _he asked cheekily.

He could practically feel her blush to where he stood. _Oh, you're in the shower. Er… I meant after the shower._

Harry chuckled._Let's just say you owe me an extra hug when I come back to the Burrow! _he returned. _What did your mum want to talk about anyway?_

_Oh, that. She was worried about me. She thinks I'm bored because I lie on my bed a lot. Of course I'm not bored when I'm doing that. I'm listening to your lessons, but she doesn't know that, now does she._

_So, what did she say?_

_She wants me to find a hobby. She's trying to push me into music. She arranged for music lessons and even recruited a girl from in the area to learn together with me._

_And you don't want to learn how to make music,_ Harry guessed.

_No, that's not it, _she replied hesitantly. _It might be interesting, but I like following the lessons with you too._

_If you're interested, I think you should do it. You won't have music lessons all the time, so you can still follow most of mine. Besides, I can tell you about all the lessons you've missed afterwards. We have plenty of time for that at night. Not to mention that you'll have the same lessons next year._

_Yeah, maybe.__It may get my mum of my back too if I do it, _she reasoned.

Harry exited the shower and started dressing.

_Do you know the girl you'll have lessons with?_

_Yeah, I do. I met her a few times before. Her name is Luna. She's ok, but a bit weird._

When Harry was ready he headed out to meet up with his friends. They were waiting for him outside the changing room.

"Hey, guys! What's up?"

Unfortunately, they all began talking at once and all Harry was able to gather was something about Snape and jinxing. And so, Harry quickly cut them off as he said, "Ho, ho, everyone shut up! I can't understand a thing you're saying. Hermione, you explain!"

"It was Snape! Snape was jinxing your broom! I saw it," she said. She was looking as though her entire belief system had crashed. A teacher had tried to kill a student.

"Hermione was ruddy brilliant, mate," Ron praised with admiring eyes. "She saved you! Tell him what you did!"

"I saw him staring at your broom and muttering words. He was keeping eye contact and he wasn't blinking, so I knew it was him who was jinxing your broom. Then I – eh – set his robes on fire," she mumbled quietly, blushing slightly.

"Yeah, and after she did, your broom was fine again," Ron continued. "She was amazing!"

Hermione was definitely beaming now. The relationship between Ron and Hermione had improved quite a lot ever since the incident with Fluffy, but they were still careful around each other. To hear Ron complimenting Hermione in such a passionate way was a first for all of them.

"Really?" Harry asked. "Thanks, Hermione. I guess I owe you my life."

"Anytime, Harry. I'm so glad your ok," she said, giving him a hug. Harry noticed a strange flicker in Ron's eyes when she did, but it was gone so fast Harry couldn't determine what it was.

"Why would he do that, though?" Harry asked. "I know he hates me, but trying to kill me is a bit extreme."

"Maybe he just wanted Slytherin to win the match," Ron suggested.

"I doubt it. Seems like a petty reason to me."

"We should go to McGonagall. She'll know what to do," Hermione said.

The others agreed and they hurried inside and went to McGonagall's office.

"Come in," the professor shouted when Hermione knocked. The four friends entered.

She looked a bit surprised to see the four of them entering, but the emotion slipped of her face and was quickly replaced with the stern expression they were used of her.

"Yes?" she said questioning.

"We … er," Ron began.

"Professor," Hermione interrupted. "I'm sure you've noticed the strange behaviour of Harry's broom during the match." McGonagall nodded. "We think we know who's responsible."

"Yeah, it was Snape! He hexed the broom," Ron said bluntly. Hermione rolled her eyes at the impolite manner with which the redhead announced their suspicions. She was probably aiming for a more diplomatic way.

McGonagall's lips thinned a bit at the accusation. "And why, pray tell, do you believe a Hogwarts teacher is responsible for such a heinous crime?" she asked in a slightly cold voice, indicating that she clearly didn't believe them.

"We saw it, professor," Hermione said. "I know what a hex looks like. I've read all about them. You've got to keep eye contact and professor Snape wasn't blinking."

"And it only stopped when Hermione set his robes on fire!" Ron exclaimed. This resulted in Hermione paling. If she didn't believe them, she would be accused of attacking a teacher, something she really didn't want.

"Miss Granger. Is this true?" the professor asked in a slightly shocked voice.

Hermione swallowed. "Yes, professor," she managed to get out. She took a deep breath, gathering her courage, before continuing. "But it is also true that Harry's broom only stopped trying to throw him off after I did it."

"Really," McGonagall said sceptically. She sternly looked from one to the other. "For your information, professor Snape was trying to undo the hex on Mr. Potter's broom. It is probably only because of his actions that you stand here at the moment."

Harry sucked in a big breath. Snape had tried to save him. The cruel, vindictive Potions Master who had done nothing but insult him since the beginning of the school year has saved his life. Harry didn't know what to think. Or do for that matter. Should he go and thank him? Or should he just ignore the fact that Snape had saved him?

Neville's voice brought him out of his thoughts. "Professor, then who…?"

"We don't know, Mr. Longbottom," she interrupted with a stern look. "And I don't want to go around making accusations. We will investigate this matter thoroughly and we hope we can catch the perpetrator. I can assure you, though, that it is not professor Snape." She looked at all of them intently for a few seconds. "You are not in trouble for setting professor Snape's robes on fire, but be careful not to make unfounded accusations in the future. Now I suggest you all go back to your dormitories. I do believe you have a victory party to attend to."

"Yes, professor," the four students chorused.


	8. Chapter 8: First Snow

DISCLAIMER: I own nothing but my imagination.

AN: Here's the next instalment of this story. Thanks to etj4eagle for the beta work. Enjoy!

**Chapter 8: First Snow**

The days after the Quidditch match were nerve-wracking for Harry; he was skittish, jumpy and on edge; not at all surprising given that someone had tried to kill him. And, making it even worse, neither he nor his friends had any idea as to who the attacker was, or even what his motives could be. Snape had been on top of the list of suspects for a few moments, their _only_ suspect for that matter. Hermione had spotted him doing something to Harry's broom from the stands and had naturally concluded that he was the one responsible for Harry's broom misbehaving. She had acted without hesitation and had set Snape's robes on fire in an effort to save her friend. The fact that the threat had vanished the second the spell took effect would normally have confirmed Snape's guilt. Unfortunately that theory had been dismissed by McGonagall as soon as it was spoken. Ron had trouble believing her but Harry could find no reason not to. After all, she had been sitting next to Snape in the stands. If she said Snape had been trying to save him, then he had no choice but to believe.

Harry and his friends had tried to assimilate a new list of possible suspects, but nothing made any sense to them. Of course all Slytherins were potential suspects. The rivalry between Gryffindor and Slytherin was always high, especially on the account of Quidditch. But then again, broomsticks were supposed to be very spell resistant. Nothing but the strongest dark magic could interfere with them, which was definitely not taught at Hogwarts and they doubted any of the students were powerful enough to pull it off.

If it wasn't a student, then the only possible suspects left were the teachers. But then they were facing a lack of motive. Harry simply couldn't believe anyone would want to kill him. It just didn't make any sense to him. He was just a small wizard of barely eleven who had only been in the Wizarding world for a few months. As it was, these worries weighed heavily on Harry Potter, preventing him from fully enjoying his magical life at Hogwarts. Luckily for him, Ginny and homework proved to be two very effective distractions from his troubles; the first far more pleasant than the second.

* * *

On the Monday following the match, in Potions, Harry kept a close eye on the Potions professor. His demeanour seemed no different from usual, if maybe a bit surlier after the defeat of Slytherin in the last Quidditch match. Harry, though, did notice that Snape avoided looking at him at all, which Harry was actually happy for as the reduced scrutiny allowed him and Neville to brew a perfect Sleeping Draught by the end of the lesson.

Afterwards, Harry approached the professor. Ginny had advised him to leave it alone, but Harry felt honour bound to do this. After all, Snape did try to save him according to McGonagall and Harry felt he had to make at least an effort to express his gratitude for that, whether Snape accepted his thanks or not.

Harry stood before the desk and made sure his memories were firmly protected and hidden in his mind. Even if he had stopped open hostilities, the Potions master's cold penetrating eyes still sent a shiver down the spine of the young student and he didn't want to take any chances. When Snape failed to acknowledge Harry's presence and continued grading the papers in front of him, Harry coughed politely to attract his attention. "Eh… professor?" he said in a small voice.

"What?" Snape snarled without looking up to his most hated student.

"Eh… I wanted to thank you," he mumbled so quiet Snape couldn't understand.

"What? Speak up, Potter! I can't hear you!" the professor retorted in a cold voice.

"I said … I wanted to thank you," Harry managed to say in a stronger voice.

Snape finally looked up and his eyes narrowed. "What for?"

"For … eh … for saving me during the match Saturday. I heard you tried to counter the jinx on my broom and I just wanted to thank you for that."

Harry stood there nervously wringing his hands, wondering what response Snape would give him.

"I didn't do it for you, Potter," Snape finally said, his voice gaining anger for some reason. "I couldn't care less whether you died or not. Now get out!"

Harry didn't hesitate and hurried his way out of the classroom.

_Why did I want to thank that git again? _Harry fumed as he closed the door behind him, barely refraining from slamming it shut with all the anger coursing through his body.

_Because you're stubborn, too damn noble and you didn't listen to me,_ came Ginny's instant answer.

_Yeah, I know,_ he sighed. _I just thought it was the right thing to do._

_It was, Harry. Snape's just a pathetic, short-minded man. You're the bigger person… even if you're still small and scrawny, _she teased.

_Hey! _he complained good-naturedly, now with a grin on his face. _I've grown at least an inch or two since I am at Hogwarts. I am loads bigger than you now._

The only answer from Ginny's side was something that sounded like a snort of laughter, but Harry couldn't react to that because Ron chose that moment to interrupt Harry's mental conversation. He and Hermione had waited for Harry when they saw that he had gone to talk to Snape. They had also heard the vicious words the Potions master had said to their friend and neither had they missed the furious and hurt look in Harry's eyes when he had turned away from Snape. To see his mood change from furious to smiling in barely a few seconds was a bit odd to say the least.

So it was only natural when Ron looked a bit confused at Harry's broad grin. "What are you grinning about?" he asked with a frown on his face.

Harry blanched for a second as he was jerked away from his thoughts by Ron's words, but his mood was now good enough to make a witty response. "The little voice in my head is funny today," he deadpanned, ticking with his finger against his temple. He snorted with laughter at both Ginny's mental sniggers and Ron's now more confused look. Somehow he missed the joke completely. Hermione did not, however. She knew enough about Muggle mental illnesses to have the corners of her mouth twitching with amusement.

"Enough with the joking," Harry said, his encounter with Snape now completely forgotten. "We've got to get moving if we don't want to be late for Herbology."

* * *

"Come on, you guys," Hermione whined. "I'll never find it alone!"

"But we have been spending ages going through all these books. My head is hurting and I've got all this dust in my nose from these old books," Ron complained, proving his point when a huge dust cloud made him sneeze when he slammed shut the large tome that lay in front of him.

"He's got a point, Hermione," Harry said carefully. "We've been through all these books on famous Wizards of this age and whatever, but we haven't even seen the name Flamel."

Ever since Hagrid had mentioned Flamel by mistake, Hermione had insisted on finding out who he was. She had heard the name somewhere before or read it somewhere before but couldn't remember where or what it was about. She seemed to take that as a personal insult. Her memory didn't fail her often, but when it did she became irritable and touchy and didn't stop searching every possible resource available until the lost knowledge was recovered.

Neville, Ron and Harry had gone along with her at first as a tribute to their newly strengthened friendship, but now, more than a month later, they had enough. They had searched for hours, sacrificing almost all their free time to find out who this Flamel character could be.

It was early December now and the new month had brought colder weather. Last night the first snow of the season had fallen, covering the Hogwarts grounds in a thick, white carpet. And now the winter sun was shining and on this beautiful day, neither of the boys could stand spending any more time with their noses buried in dusty old books. They were all itching to go out and play in the fresh powder.

"But we'll never find out who he is if we don't keep looking. It's got to be around here somewhere," Hermione insisted.

Harry made his decision. "That's enough, Hermione. It's time we all had a break. Even you," he added sternly when she tried to interrupt. "Come on, put the book down!"

"But…"

"Now, Hermione!" Harry said in a warning voice.

"Oh, all right," she grumbled, but she had a small smile on her face.

Ten minutes later they were all out on the grounds, each of them wearing several layers of thick clothes to keep themselves warm.

"What do you guys want to do?" Neville asked.

"I want to make a snowman!" Harry said with undiluted boyish joy. He had never been allowed to play in the snow at Privet Drive and every time he had tried to make one while at school, Dudley was always there to destroy it before it resembled anything close to a snowman. Now, with no Dursleys around, he could finally make one.

"Yeah, that would be fun," Ron answered. "Let's make the largest one ever!"

Hermione and Neville agreed too and the four friends began making their snowman. The snow was thick and sticky, excellent for making snowmen. They, however, weren't the only students to have that idea as there were three other groups that they could see working on snowmen too – but the balls that Harry and his friends were rolling were definitely the largest around.

When they finished rolling their balls some time later, Harry asked with a concerned frown on his face, "How are we going to get that one up there?" The bottom ball was almost as high as Ron and it had taken all four of them to roll it. The middle one was barely smaller and Harry could see no way to get it on top of the other.

"Are you a wizard or not?" Hermione smiled drawing her wand. "_Wingardium Leviosa,_" she said, pointing her wand at the large snowball. It hovered for a second just above the ground before it crashed back down with a dull thud. "Ugh, it's too heavy!"

"I think we'll need to do it together," Neville suggested.

"Okay then on three." Hermione said as the others took out their wands. "One, two, three, _Wingardium Leviosa_," and with that they raised the middle ball on top of the bottom one. Then repeating the process, they placed the ball for the head on top.

After decorating it with a few stones and sticks, they stood back and admired their work. Ron, looking thoughtful, said, "It looks a bit like Hagrid, don't you think?"

Harry laughed. "It certainly is the size of Hagrid. That's got to be some kind of record, don't you think?"

"Yeah! The largest snowman ever for sure!" Ron laughed.

"Too bad we don't have something to use as a beard," Neville said thoughtfully. "Then we could really make it look like Hagrid."

Harry looked around for a few seconds before finding a rather thick stick. "_Abe Inanimate,_" he murmured and the stick transfigured in a fake bushy beard just like Hagrid's. "There," he said smiling.

"Now that's Hagrid," Ron said with satisfaction when it was attached it to the snowman's head. "Good. That's finished. Now on to the next event!"

"What's that?" Neville asked cautiously having noticed the mischievous tone in Ron's voice.

Ron's reply was a snowball that hit Neville square between the eyes. Then with a broad grin he redundantly exclaimed, "Snowball fight!"

"Oh, I'll get you for that!" Neville grumbled good-naturedly while he wiped the snow out of his face. He quickly scooped some snow together and hurled it back at his attacker. Ron ducked and the snow went wide, hitting Harry instead.

"Hey!" Harry exclaimed indignantly.

From there things progressed rapidly and soon they were engrossed in a full-fledged snowball fight. Before long others started joining their fight. First were the Weasley twins and their friend Lee Jordan. They were soon followed by some friends of the twins from Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff, who in term invited others to join them. In no time a good thirty students were having a snowball fight of epic proportions. Even Blaise Zabini and Daphne Greengrass from Slytherin had joined in.

The snowball fight ended up being great fun for everyone involved. The air was white with snowballs flying around and everyone was covered from head to toe in snow. Some formed alliances to fight together but those alliances tended to be very short lived, with their members quickly turning on each other. Most of the time, though, it was a free for all with everyone trying to hit as many others as possible.

Though, there was a short period of time when Malfoy passed by that all of the fighters spanned together. Malfoy in being his typical superior-self made a lame comment about little children playing in the snow. Not a particularly smart move for the blonde-haired boy who along with his two bodyguards suddenly found themselves being pelted with snowballs by the thirty students who enjoyed having a new target. The three Slytherins ran as fast as their legs could carry them back to the school followed closely by a large laughing group that was throwing as many snowballs as possible at the three fleeing boys.

* * *

Once the snowball fight broke up, the four thoroughly wet Gryffindors headed down to Hagrid's cabin and knocked on his door. They were cold and tired and had hurried to the closest place they knew where they could get warm again. And, of course a visit to Hagrid was always a fun and nice way to spend the rest of the afternoon.

Fang barked happily from inside the cabin when he heard the voices of the four youngsters while a beaming Hagrid opened the door. A moment later Harry was tackled to the ground by Hagrid's boarhound, who furiously started attacking Harry's face with very wet and smelly licks. Harry tried with all his might to push the huge dog away from him, but Fang was just too heavy.

"'Ere, Fang! Let 'm breath, there's a good lad!" Hagrid said with a chuckle. The others too were laughing loudly with their struggling friend. Finally Hagrid pulled Fang away and Harry shakily got on his feet again, wiping the drool from his face and his clothes.

"Does he have to do that every time?" Harry grumbled.

"'E jus' likes ya is all," Hagrid said to Harry with a pat on his back which had the boy falling face first in the snow. "Woops! Sorry 'bout that." He hauled Harry back on his feet.

"Is ok," Harry muttered while getting the snow out of his nose.

"Now, ter what do I owe yer visit?" Hagrid asked with a broad smile.

"Well, we're cold and wet and we were hoping we could warm up a bit here before heading back to the castle," Hermione explained.

"Of course ya can! Ya know yer always welcome 'ere, don't ya? Come in, come in," Hagrid answered gesturing them in with his enormous arms.

The four friends entered and were surprised to see that Hagrid already had a visitor. Quirrel was sitting at the table inside sipping from a cup of tea.

"Oh, hello professor," Harry greeted, suddenly feeling a bit uneasy. He looked to Hagrid hoping for an explanation.

"Professor Quirrel is visitin' too at the moment," Hagrid said. "Ya don't mind the extra company, do ya, professor?"

"Oh … er … N-not at all," Quirrel said in a quavering voice.

"We were jus' talkin' about Fluffy, ya know," Hagrid informed smiling.

_Now that's suspicious, _Harry said to Ginny. He rubbed his forehead trying to ease a building headache.

_What is? _she asked, dragging her attention away from the book she was reading.

_Just listen now. We'll talk later. _Harry focused on the conversation in front of him again.

"That thing is still in the castle?!" Ron exclaimed. Hermione paled at the thought and Neville swallowed audibly.

"Nothin' ter worry about," Hagrid soothed noticing their distress. "Dumbledore put 'em in another room and made sure 'imself that 'e can't escape again."

"Y-you shouldn't be t-talking about this in f-f-front of the children, Hagrid," Quirrel reminded him.

"Oh. Yer righ', of course. So, what did ya guys do terday?" Hagrid asked switching the subject.

Ron, Neville and Hermione launched into a description of the snowman and the snowball fight, but Harry tuned them out and started his own conversation._Remember when I thought I heard Quirrel talking in his classroom just a few days after Hallowe'en?_

_Yeah?_

_Maybe I didn't imagine it. He's here now visiting Hagrid and talking about Fluffy. What if he's trying to find out how to get past the dog?_

_It is a bit suspicious, but it could be he was just interested in what happened to it. You don't have any proof._

_Yeah, I know, _Harry sighed. _Do you think I should tell someone about it?_

Ginny was silent for a second before answering. _You could tell someone about your suspicions. McGonagall or Dumbledore maybe. Maybe they'll keep a closer eye on him if you do._

_You know, that's not such a bad idea. I might just do that._

_I'll have you know that I'm full of good ideas, Mr. Potter,_ she said with a huff, but Harry could hear the laughter in her mental voice.

_Are you now? Good to know. You can help me decide on Christmas presents then._

"Harry? Harry!" Ron shouted while waving his hands in front of Harry's face.

Harry blinked. "What?"

"Where were you? Are you ok?" Hermione asked concerned.

"No … er … yes, I'm fine. Just knackered and I have a bit of headache," he said quickly. He really did have a headache by now. The throbbing in his head had increased to a dull pounding while he was at Hagrid's. He rubbed his scar again which seemed to be the centre of the pain.

"We were just about to leave. Dinner's in twenty minutes," Ron said. "Coming mate?"

"Yeah," Harry answered. "I'm coming. See you later, Hagrid. And thanks for the tea. Bye, professor Quirrel."

The others too said their goodbyes and a few moments later they were trudging through the snow back to the castle. The fresh air did wonders on Harry and his headache disappeared quickly.

* * *

"Good morning, Mr. Potter," professor McGonagall greeted the next Tuesday before class. "You're early."

"Good morning," he replied in turn.

McGonagall fished a piece of parchment out of a drawer of her desk. "You have already finished a large part of this year's curriculum. Therefore I have compiled you a list of spells that are not taught at Hogwarts but that you might enjoy to learn. Work on the first ten today. They are all spells that can change the materials of the object into something else. For example this first one – _Alter Ventana _– can change a thing into glass. Watch." McGonagall pointed her wand at a cup in front of her and immediately it changed into smooth glass. "This is a simple transfiguration and won't last long and a simple '_Finite_' will return it to it's original state. I will teach you next week how to make it permanent. Any questions?"

"No, professor. But there is something else I would like to talk about." Harry was wringing his hands nervously. How would she react to him suspecting a teacher again?

"Yes?" she asked expectantly.

"Well … you see… I've noticed some odd things about professor Quirrel."

"Oh? And what's that?"

"I think he might be trying to get what is guarded on the third floor," Harry said quickly before he lost his nerve.

A huge sceptical frown appeared on McGonagall's face. "May I enquire what made you think that?"

Harry started explaining what he suspected the reason was for a troll getting in the castle, what he had overheard in the week after Hallowe'en, that he had seen Quirrel limping and now the latest conversation between Quirrel and Hagrid about Fluffy.

"I know it's not proof, professor, but I thought it was suspicious and I just wanted to let you know," Harry concluded his story.

McGonagall was quiet for a few moments before replying. "Thank you for telling me, Mr. Potter. I think it's nothing to worry about, but I will relay these things to professor Dumbledore. Please take a seat at your desk. The others will be here any second now."

"Thank you, professor."

* * *

The days crept by. Lessons became more interesting and demanding. Homework increased too and Harry, Ron and Neville would be at a loss if it weren't for Hermione. She pushed them every night to work on their homework immediately and helped them understand everything. Luckily Harry had a little more time to work these days because Quidditch practice had come to an end for the winter. It was just dark too early in the evenings. No point in training if you can't see the Quaffle, is there?

Harry kept a close eye on Quirrel. He never did anything suspicious that they could see. One thing he did notice was that he wasn't the only one keeping a close eye on Quirrel. Lately, whenever he saw Quirrel out of class, they also saw Snape, except when he had a class to teach. Perhaps his conversation with McGonagall really did have some results. It was good to know that they took his suspicions seriously.

The mood in the castle brightened as the holidays got closer. Christmas decorations appeared all over the castle. Suddenly there was mistletoe flying through the castle to the delight of some of the older students – and to the horror of most of the younger. The suits of armour were singing carols in rusty voices, Mrs. Norris was seen running around in a Santa outfit (courtesy of the twins) and folders from various Wizarding shops appeared in the common rooms so everyone could order their presents. The Great Hall was decorated with twelve humongous Christmas trees filled with garlands and baubles and real glittering fairies.

Everywhere you looked you had smiling faces and everyone was eagerly awaiting the holidays, including Harry. He had been away from Ginny for almost four months now. He could still talk to her and he could see and touch her in his dreams, but somehow the real thing still was a thousand times better. Harry couldn't wait to get back home.

Home

It still sounded foreign in Harry's ears. He never had anything remotely like it while growing up with the Dursleys. Now he was free from those … Harry didn't know what to call them. People sounded too nice and any words that were an appropriate description were not spoken by decent humans. Harry tried not to dwell on his past and for the most part that worked. And when he did feel a bit overwhelmed with memories, he had Ginny and his friends to pull him out of his bad moods.

He was lucky he had them.

* * *

Before anyone really realised it, the term had come to an end and it was time to head home for the holidays. Except for a few exceptions, such as Hermione, this morning found those students that were returning home packing frantically. Harry, for his part, was exceptionally chipper today. He was finally going to see Ginny again. Her parents had briefly considered going to Rumania to visit Charlie, but finally opted to spend the holidays at home with their newest member of the family. Ginny was of course the one who had talked her parents into staying at the Burrow and was very proud of that fact.

Harry too was very pleased that she had succeeded, even if it did keep his adoptive parents from visiting their second eldest. He was preparing for a real Christmas for the first time in his life. Together with Ginny he had sought out small presents for everyone else in the family. They had kept Hedwig fairly busy the last days collecting them, but they were pretty content with everything they had bought.

"Oy! Fred!" Harry shouted to one of the twins after he had dragged his trunk down the stairs. He had learned to recognise which twin was which over the past months, something only Ginny had managed before him. It was driving them nuts.

"Yes, my little adoptive brother?"

Harry rolled his eyes. He was never going to get rid of that name. "Could you take your … or my – whichever – broom with you? It would be cool to play some Quidditch at home."

"Sure thing, bro!" Fred answered, ascending the stairs again. "Should be fun!"

Harry dragged his trunk over to the portrait hole where his three friends were waiting.

"Looking forward to the holidays?" he asked.

"Oh yes," Hermione replied enthusiastically. "I'm going to France with my parents. There's supposed to be a very interesting Wizarding community in Paris. I can't wait to see it!"

"Great! How about you, Neville?" he asked, turning his attention to the other boy. He had lost most of his shyness the past months and was now much more self assured and confident. It was visible in the way he held himself. Harry still remembered the shy boy who was nervously clutching his toad the very first day at Hogwarts. The Neville now stood straighter and had a confident smile on his face most of the time. Only a few things could rattle him back to who he was before. Snape was one of them. But then again, Snape could rattle anyone if he wanted to.

"I'll be home for the largest part of the holidays and with New-Year's I'm going with my gran to a family dinner at my Uncle Algie's place," he answered. He looked a bit miserable when he told them his holiday plans. Obviously he didn't feel like another family visit. Neville took a deep breath. "And with Christmas I'll be visiting my parents," he added quietly.

"Your parents? I thought you lived with your grandmother?" Ron asked bluntly.

Hermione stepped on his foot and threw him an ugly look. Ron cursed but shut up when he saw Neville. The boy looked very pale. It had obviously taken a lot of willpower to admit that part of his holiday.

"What happened to your parents?" Harry asked softly. He led the boy to one of the soft chairs nearby.

Neville took another deep breath and blinked away the tears in his eyes. "It happened shortly after you defeated You-Know-Who," he said softly. "A group of Death Eaters didn't believe he was defeated and thought my parents knew where he was. They attacked them and … tortured them to insanity. They're at St-Mungo's now. They – they don't even recognise me when I visit them."

Harry had a crop in his throat after hearing this revelation and Hermione was looking teary eyed. She sniffed and moved to give Neville a hug. Harry and Ron moved closer too and each put his hand on one of his shoulders in support. They didn't let go until Neville had regained his composure. He stood up with a last sniff and gave his friends a small smile. Hermione and Ron smiled back and moved to their trunks. Harry lingered a bit. He couldn't help to feel a connection with his friend. Just like him, Neville had grown up without his parents around. He probably didn't have it as bad as Harry had since he still had his grandmother and his parents were still alive, but it held no doubt that Neville had suffered too. Harry couldn't imagine how it felt to visit your parents while they couldn't even recognise you.

"Are you ok?" Harry asked softly, looking his friend in the eyes. Neville nodded his head. "Thank you for telling us. I know it was a hard thing to do. If you ever need anything, we'll be here. I'm glad you are my friend." Neville nodded his acknowledgment. After one last pat on the shoulder, Harry led the boy to the trunks and the four descended the stairs together.

Once on the train, the mood was more relaxed and everyone was enjoying themselves again. They passed the time playing exploding snap or Wizarding chess. Even Hermione was persuaded to put her books to the side for a while. Of course, the fun couldn't last and a certain Slytherin chose to honour the four friends with a short visit.

"Well if it isn't the Mudblood, the Squib, the Weasel and the Boy-Who-Stinks," he sneered, standing in the doorway with his two cronies to back him up. "How nice…"

Ron and Neville became red in the face with anger and it took the combined efforts from Hermione and Harry to keep them from pounding the blond boy to pulp.

"Don't call her that!" Ron snarled, trying to wrench himself loose from Harry's grip. Malfoy just laughed.

_The foul, loathsome git! _Ginny cursed in his head, followed by another string of words that couldn't possibly be nice. Harry didn't even realise there were so many terms to insult someone.

_What's a Mudblood, Gin?_ he asked confused. If a single word caused such a strong reaction, it must be bad.

_It's a real insulting term for someone whose parents are Muggles,_ she explained. _It means foul blood. Hex him!_ she ordered.

_My pleasure!_Harry growled. "Leave him to me," Harry whispered to Ron. "Pretend to keep struggling. I'll curse him before he even knows what happens."

Immediately the pressure lifted, but Ron kept the act up splendidly. Harry slipped his hand in his pocket and covertly extracted his wand.

_This one is for you, Gin,_ he said mentally. Harry turned quickly and pointed his wand. "_Chreschiroptera_!" he snarled, pushing all his anger in the spell. There was a red flash and the next second large bats were attacking Malfoy's face. He fell to the floor screaming and started swatting at the slimy bats. Next Harry pointed his wand first at Crabbe and then at Goyle when they advanced on the Gryffindors. "_Stupefy_!" he yelled twice causing them to hit the floor with two large thumps. Though, Crabbe's impact was a bit softer as he ended up hitting a rather sensitive spot of Malfoy's, which caused Harry and the others to start laughing. Then getting a hold of his laughter for a moment, Harry stunned Malfoy as well and pushed him out of the door before closing it.

"You shouldn't have done that, Harry," Hermione admonished, but her heart wasn't in it. Her eyes were sparkling with mirth.

"Well, couldn't have him insult my best friends, now could I?" he answered smiling. _There. As you heard, your wish is my command, my lady. I hexed him good._

_Thank you, good sir. There will be a reward waiting at the station._

This caused Harry to grin broadly.

"What are you smiling about?" Ron asked curiously.

_Damn, I'll have to be more careful,_ Harry berated himself once again. "Just thinking about Malfoy," he invented. "About how to prank him next term. The last prank I played on him was rather soft and he deserves a better one."

"Really? Can I help?" Ron asked eagerly.

"Sure. Any ideas?" Harry offered. Ron, Neville and Harry enthusiastically started throwing ideas around. While the ideas started relatively tame, they quickly began to escalate with each one being more outrageous and violent than the previous one. Hermione was the only one not participating and the only thing heard from her was an indignant huff from time to time. The idea of breaking rules was still a sore point on her part.

Brainstorming ways to prank Malfoy kept them occupied for a while, but eventually they exhausted the topic and settled down to playing games for the rest of the trip. Nothing really exciting happened, if you discounted the card deck exploding in Ron's face and singeing his eyebrows.

When they exited the train at King's Cross, to their relief, all that they saw of Malfoy was his back as he hurried away to his parents. His father was standing at the side of the platform, looking like he owned the place. He looked every bit as unpleasant as his son. Harry tore his eyes away, looking for his favourite redhead.

_Where are you, Gin?_ he asked.

_Wouldn't you like to know, Potter,_ she answered mischievously. Suddenly two small hands obscured his vision. "Guess who?" a sweet voice said in his ear.

_There you are!_ he thought to her. He turned around swiftly and pulled her in a hug. She grabbed him in return and gave him a gentle kiss on the cheek. "I missed you, Gin," he whispered in her ear.

"I missed you too. Lucky we had our ways to stay in touch," she smiled.

He chuckled, but the smile disappeared from his face when he saw Molly approaching. "Eh, your mum doesn't look too happy, Gin. Perhaps we should let go of each other now?"

She nodded in his shoulder and reluctantly let go, but grabbed his hand defiantly. She looked her mother in the eye, daring her to comment. Harry saw them visually repressing their temper, both Molly and Ginny.

"Harry dear, welcome home. How was Hogwarts?" she asked in a sweet voice and gave him a warm hug. The affection was real, but Harry could see she was more than a bit unnerved by the enthusiastic manner by which the two kids had greeted each other.

"It was great, Molly," Harry said enthusiastically, his happiness not fazed by the reactions from his adoptive mother. "The lessons were interesting and I've learned loads. The food was amazing, but not nearly as great as yours. I can't wait until you make your meatloaf again."

Molly visibly calmed down and gave him a real smile now. "Just your luck. We're having meatloaf tonight," she said with a smile.

_Flattery will get you anywhere, Mr. Potter, _Ginny commented.

_I know, _he answered with a mental chuckle. _You taught me that._

Molly moved on to the next in line. "Ron!" she said enthusiastically, sweeping him in a strong hug like only the Weasley matriarch could do. Harry was secretly glad to have received the gentler version this time. "Hi, honey! Look at how much you've grown! How was school? Did you learn a lot? How are your points? We never hear anything from you! You should write more, you know. And what was that business at Halloween? They said you were hurt. Do you have anymore pain? Has your arm healed ok?"

_I was waiting for that to happen, _Ginny winced as her mother began fussing over her youngest son. She grinned at Harry. _Don't worry; you'll get your part too. I'm guessing she's saving your personal fussing for home. She likes to spread the pain._

_Can't wait,_ Harry said sarcastically. He looked around. _Where's your dad anyway? I haven't seen him yet._

_He's not here. He's still at work. We're taking the Knight Bus home._

_The Knight Bus?_

_You'll see,_ Ginny answered, but it sounded not really reassuring. _Come on; introduce me to your friends._

He nodded and led her to Hermione, who was chatting with her parents. They looked thoroughly out of place between all the wizards.

"Good day Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger. My name is Harry. I'm a good friend of Hermione's," Harry said, holding out his hand.

"So you are the Harry my daughter has written so much about," Mr. Granger said smiling. He shook Harry's hand enthusiastically. He was a little stiff, but he still looked thoroughly fascinated by all the wizards around him.

"Really?" Harry replied, raising an eyebrow to Hermione. He chuckled when she became a little pink.

"Not like that, Harry," Hermione responded smiling.

"Hermione, meet Ginny. She's Ron's sister, which is obvious by the hair alone, and she's my first and best friend."

"Hi, Ginny. Good to meet you. I can see you're very good friends," she commented, looking at the intertwined hands between Harry and Ginny. Ginny promptly blushed all over her face and Harry did just the same, but neither made a move to let go.

"Say no more," Hermione smiled knowingly. "Have a good holiday, Harry."

"I'm sure I will. You too, Hermione. Have a great time in France . It was nice to meet you, Mr. Granger, Mrs. Granger," he greeted.

_So that's what Hermione looks like. Good. She's not your type, _Ginny said smiling, when they walked back to the Weasleys. Neville had disappeared before they could say goodbye.

_You should be worried, though,_ Harry responded grinning. _I think she's awfully pretty. Beautiful bushy brown hair, nice figure…_

She whacked him playfully in the shoulder. _Prat!_

_But to be honest, you're right. I have only one type. Pretty, ill-behaved, hitting fiery redheads with cute freckles, _he said with a straight face. _They are the only ones that can handle me, you know. Too bad I don't know any girls like that._

Another hit.

_Ouch,_ he said with a fake grimace, rubbing his shoulder. Then he gave a gasp of surprise._What do you know? There's a pretty redhead holding my hand! How did that happen?_

_I have no idea! But I better start teaching you some proper manners, otherwise you'll be joking around like that for the rest of our lives._

_But you love that! _he answered smiling. They had reached the others now.

_It's good to have you back,_ she sighed contently, leaning her head against his shoulder.

_It's good to be back._


	9. Chapter 9: Holidays

**A/N: **I'm finally back with a new chapter. I've had this one stored on my computer for some time, but I haven't gotten to uploading it yet. Sorry about the wait. I can however promise you chapter 10 by the end of next week (as it's already written and reviewed) and probably chapter 11 the week after (as it's currently with my beta). As always, a thank you to etj4eagle for helping me with this story.

**Chapter 9: Holidays**

The ride home from the station was nothing short of adventurous and a teeny bit uncomfortable. When Molly first announced that they would be taking the Knight Bus home, as Arthur, who was the only who knew how to drive the car, was at work, Harry had been a bit curious as to why this news was accompanied by loud groans from all of the younger Weasleys. Unfortunately, his ride home quickly enlightened him to the phenomenon that was the Knight Bus.

The Knight Bus was a huge, bright violet triple-decker bus that had the ability to appear out of nowhere and to get anywhere in Britain within minutes. It was fast and cheap, but comfort was definitely not something one was to expect while riding it. None of the mismatched chairs on the bus were actually attached to it in any way, so every time the bus came to a sudden halt – which it did frighteningly often – almost everyone on board had an uncomfortable close encounter with the floor. By the end of the ride, Harry and the Weasleys were covered in a multitude of painful bruises. It was a good thing Molly always had a huge supply of Bundy's Bruise Buster at home.

As everyone hurried out of the bus when it finally stopped at the Burrow, Harry took a moment standing still, shaking on his legs, to recover from the ride. Any remaining unease from the ride was chased away when a small hand captured his causing him to relax as Ginny's eyes met his. After returning Ginny's happy smile, Harry looked up towards the Borrow and found that it lay beautifully under a thick layer of virgin snow with a small string of smoke circled up from out of the chimney. It just looked picture perfect to him. He took a deep breath and revelled in the feeling of coming home.

_It's good to be home, isn't it?_ Ginny guessed correctly.

_Yeah, it is,_ Harry agreed. _But it's even better to be with you again. I missed you so much. _He squeezed her hand as if to assure himself that she was really there.

Ginny squeezed back and gave him a brilliant smile. _Come on. Let's get your things inside._

The others were already inside and Ginny and Harry followed dragging his trunk with him.

"Aah, there you are, dear," Molly said kindly when they entered. "Why don't you go and put your trunk in your room and change for dinner?" she stated more than asked. "Arthur will be home in half an hour and then you can eat that meatloaf you like so much."

"Sure, Molly," Harry answered smiling.

Working together, Harry and Ginny got the trunk up the stairs. It wasn't that heavy since he had left a lot of clothes and books at Hogwarts, but it wasn't that light either, but between the two of them they managed just fine.

They entered his room and put his trunk at the end of his bed and started putting his clothes in his closet. HIS room, HIS bed and HIS closet. His own little piece of territory that was his and only his. It wasn't even that large a room – in fact it was rather small – but it was infinitely better and comfier than the tiny cupboard at Privet Drive. That little bit of room used to be his too, but it was a place of punishment. This here was a place of happiness and peace. He briefly wondered how his relatives were dealing with him being gone before he realised he couldn't care less and they probably didn't either. The only thing they would miss about him was the fact that he used to do all the work around the house. Now that he was gone, it probably fell to Aunt Petunia to take over his work. He couldn't imagine Dudley ever doing a single thing.

When Harry finished emptying his trunk a little later he smiled happily. He really was lucky to have ended up here. Every time he thought about it, a now familiar swoop filled his stomach and he enjoyed every second of it. His eyes fell on Ginny and a different swoop of happiness filled him. It started in his lower abdomen and slowly spread across his entire body leaving him warm and tingling. He felt the urge to hold her close and unable to resist, he pulled her in a warm hug.

"Hey, what's that for?" she asked surprised, but sounding happy nevertheless and she returned the hug just as hard.

"Just happy to see you again is all," Harry answered.

A minute later they let go of each other and Ginny went to her own room to change, while Harry rummaged through his closet to find something to wear. He finally selected some loose fitting jeans and a shirt Ginny had given him last summer. He was amazed at how small it had become. It barely even fit him anymore. He had always been small and scrawny, probably due to a lack of consistent meals. The new regime had done him good and had induced a growth spurt. He had gained quite a bit of height since the summer. He shrugged it of and followed the intoxicating smells of Molly's cooking luring him back down the stairs.

"Smells great," Harry said when he entered the kitchen. Molly was already in the middle of making dinner, her wand expertly guiding the cooking.

"Just wait until tomorrow," Fred said from behind him, having followed Harry into the kitchen.

"Yeah, you haven't lived until you've eaten a Weasley Christmas Eve dinner," his twin added.

"I swear there's gonna be enough food to make even Ron pop."

"And you know how much it takes to accomplish that."

"The only downside is that mum's food is so good it probably _will_ cause Ron to pop."

"Now that won't be a pretty sight."

While the twins were none to subtly complimenting their mother's food, Molly had turned away from her food with a suspicious look on her face. "Alright, you two," she said putting her hands on her hips. "What have you done now?"

The twins tried to look innocent, but that look was so foreign on their face that it only convinced her that something was up.

"Don't you look at me like that." Molly took a few steps closer to her two sons. "You only give me compliments when you have done something or will do something. Now fess up!"

Fred and George shrank away from their mother holding up their hands for protection. "We haven't harmed anyone," they said in unison.

"Not even Percy," Fred added quickly when Molly got even closer.

Molly glared at her sons a few moments longer before sighing in defeat, but she did throw in one more warning. "You two better behave this Christmas or you'll find somebody else might get your presents this year." She turned back to her dinner murmuring quietly to herself. The kids seated at the table caught little snippets of it like 'they'll never grow up' or 'we never had these problems with the others'. Fred and George just smiled mischievously at each other the whole time.

A loud pop sounded in the living room.

"I'm home, everyone!"

"Dad's here!" the twins shouted with big smiles on their faces. At the same time loud footsteps thundered down the stairs as Ron, Percy and Ginny hurried down enthusiastically to meet their father. Harry followed Fred and George to the living room and smiled broadly when he was pulled into a family hug by the others. He had never felt so accepted in his life.

It was only when they all let go that he noticed Percy. His hair was bright pink and he seemed utterly unaware of it. Harry was just about to speak up when he was nudged in the ribs by Ginny who shook her head and held a finger to her mouth. Her face was a mask of innocence, but Harry noticed the mirth and amusement shining in her eyes and he was left without a doubt as to who was the perpetrator.

Harry looked at the others and saw similar laughter dancing in their eyes as they too pretended nothing was out of the ordinary. Even Arthur got in on the act and didn't mention a thing.

"Aah, Arthur, you're home. Just in time for dinner," Molly said walking into the living room. She stopped dead in her tracks when she spotted Percy and turned to the twins. "I knew it! You turn his hair back right this minute or you'll both be right sorry! The nerve! I asked you if you did anything and you lied about it to my face!"

"But mum," Fred protested. He paled a bit and tried to hide behind his brother.

"We had nothing to do with that," George added trying to do the same, which caused a rather amusing situation where the one was trying to put the other in front of him.

Molly pulled her wand and pointed it threateningly. "Why don't I believe …"

Her sentence was interrupted by a loud whooshing sound. Percy's skin changed to a bright blue covered in yellow dots.

"Now that we did do!" Fred and George said simultaneously.

Percy glared angrily at the twins and ran up the stairs back to his room.

Molly sighed exasperatedly and threw her hands up in despair. "Arthur! Talk to your boys!" she said sternly before returning to the kitchen.

The man of the house turned to his twin sons and tried to put up a stern face, but the curling corners of his mouth ruined the effect. "Now boys, you shouldn't pick on your brother like that. You know he doesn't like it when you do that."

"Ah, come on, dad. You know it's all in good fun."

"Yeah, it's not our fault he can't take anything. We play as much tricks on him as on the others."

"He's the only one who gets this annoyed."

"He really should lighten up a bit."

The twins looked like they hadn't finished their rant yet, but Arthur held up his hand to stop them from continuing. He sighed, his expression now serious. "Yes, I know he takes life a bit serious." The twins rolled their eyes at this enormous understatement. "But if he does, it's his choice and you should respect that. He doesn't like pranks and he definitely doesn't like to be pranked. Now I know your little pranks are harmless and in good fun, but I don't want any more pranks on Percy for the remainder of these holidays. Is that understood?" Fred and George nodded their agreement reluctantly. "Good boys. Now go to the kitchen and apologise to your mother for lying."

"Technically, we didn't," Fred pointed out.

"We said we haven't harmed Percy, which we didn't."

Arthur sighed. "That's still a lie or at least a misdirection, which you still need to apologise for." George opened his mouth to protest, but Arthur cut him of. "I won't ask you again!" Fred and George held their hands up in an apologetic gesture and went to the kitchen. "I'll better get Percy," Arthur muttered to himself and went upstairs after his upset son.

_Your mum's still scary when she's angry,_ Harry pointed out with a shiver.

_Yeah, I know. But she means well. Are you still scared that she might hurt you?_

Harry followed Ron to the kitchen and sat down while he thought on the answer. _I know she won't hurt me. I know that because you said it to me and I trust you completely. It's just that when she's angry she sounds a lot like my Aunt Petunia and it's just scary._

_Well, just remember that they're completely different too. When mum's angry it's because she cares. When your Aunt was it was just because she's an evil person. You don't have to be afraid about that anymore._

_I know, I know. I'll get used to it._

Just then Arthur got back with Percy in tow, the latter with a vastly superior look on his face and his features returned to normal.

Dinner was a bit tense at first but everyone soon relaxed – partly due to the excellent cooking by Molly – and the remainder of the meal was filled with laughter and slightly edited stories about the adventures at Hogwarts. No reason to worry the parents with the dangerous parts.

After the meal, Percy excused himself and went to his room while the others settled for a few games of exploding snap in front of the fire. Even Arthur joined in for a few. When they finally went to bed, everyone was tired and the house soon filled itself with the typical Weasley snores.

Percy was barely seen again in the days before Christmas, locking locked himself in his room most of the time, but the others had great fun. They had snowball fights, made snowmen, played a few small games of Quidditch under an area wide warming charm performed by Arthur and spent the evenings playing games or reading in front of the fire. It was one of the best times of Harry's life. The thing he liked best was that the first day back, all the Weasleys gathered to decorate the Christmas tree. They made sure he knew he was included in that. He even got to put the star on the top of the tree!

He never got to enjoy Christmas before and that was something he had always envied Dudley when he still lived at the Dursleys. They said to him that it was a time for family to enjoy and therefore he wasn't to be included. He was usually locked in his cupboard for as long as the Dursleys could justify it to themselves, which was pretty much the entire holidays. Therefore it meant all the more to him that he was included here at the Burrow.

There was only one thing that bothered him while living at the Weasleys. He still got those strange looks from Molly whenever he sat close to Ginny or held her hand. It annoyed him immensely, but he tried to ignore it. Ginny kept saying that her mother would probably get over it if they just pretended they didn't notice.

Soon it was Christmas Eve. Bill had come home from Egypt for two days and Charlie had just barely managed to secure an international portkey for Christmas. It was real busy at the dragon reserve – they had a new nest of Hungarian Horntails – and they really couldn't miss him for a long time. He was leaving again after breakfast on Christmas morning.

Molly had worked all afternoon on an enormous dinner. When it was finally ready, they all joined at the table. The table groaned under the weight of the food. It was always something amazing when Molly cooked, but this was something else entirely. The amount of food was staggering. There were at least ten different dishes and there was probably enough to feed half of Gryffindor. But then again this was the Weasley family. All of them were renowned for their appetite – even Ginny, though not as extreme as her brothers – and they did their best to honour their name. It took them a long time, but in the end they managed to eat every last crumb of it.

When the last bit had vanished, they all retreated to the living room and sank down in the sofas with a contented groan, patting their stomachs contently.

"Well, Molly. You've outdone yourself again. I can't remember ever eating better than this. It will be hard to top next year," Arthur complemented his wife. He pulled her closer to him on the sofa and she snuggled up to him contently. Just out of her sight Ginny had done the same to Harry and was now using his chest as a pillow. The warmth of the fireplace and the contented feeling of being full with a wonderful meal soon caused the two children to sink away into a deep slumber in each others arms.

A while later, the sound of hushed voices got Harry out of his wonderful dreams. He noticed immediately that they were talking about him and pretended to be asleep.

"Look at them. That's not …"

"Normal? Why not? If they like each other it's normal that they like to be close to each other. They just don't realise the situation."

"We should put a stop to it before it goes too far."

"What do you mean too far? They're only ten and eleven. How far could they possibly go?"

Ginny moved a bit in his embrace as the voices grew louder. _Whazgoinon__?_ she asked groggily.

_Shhh__. Pretend you're still sleeping. They're talking about us._

"I know they wouldn't do _that_, Arthur. But they still could do other stuff that's just not right. Even if it wasn't for…"

They heard Arthur sigh deeply. "Fine. I can see your point, but you've got to see mine. If they really like each other, they're not going to stop because we tell them about it. They will say it doesn't apply to them and to be fair, it really shouldn't."

"But that doesn't matter. Legally, they can't and that's that. Nothing we can do about that."

"There is one thing…"

They heard Molly gasp. "No. We are not doing that! He has lived long enough without a real family and now that he has one, we are not going to take any part of that away. Not even so he and our daughter can be together."

"I'm not saying that we have to do that now. But it could very well be that they fall in love when they are older. You have seen for yourself how they are around each other. And then we could very well have no choice but to do it. You know yourself that love can't be pushed away. We have tried that ourselves and it didn't work. You know that."

Molly's voice broke. "I know. But he's our son now and I feel that if we do that …"

"That he won't be anymore? If it doesn't work out between them, it could be. But if he's truly in love with her when he's older, than he will probably be again one day. Anyway, I still think that those are problems for when they're older. They're only ten and eleven now and too young to be in love. But if you really want to, we can explain the situation to them tomorrow."

They heard a huge breath escape that sounded part relief and part sad. "Thank you, Arthur."

"Now, let's go to bed."

"What about them?"

"Just let them sleep here for now."

"But… Oh, fine."

Harry and Ginny felt someone put a blanket over them and then heard two pairs of footsteps going up the stairs. They waited a few moments before they sat up.

_What was that about? Why can't we be together? _Ginny asked him with a tone of panic in her mental voice.

_I don't know, Gin,_ Harry said pensive. _She said that we couldn't be together legally. What kind of law would forbid you and me to be a – a couple?_ he asked blushing a bit._ I've never heard of anything like that._

_Me either. But it did sound like dad had a solution._

_Yeah, but your mum didn't like it. It almost sounded like it would be throwing me out of the family._

Ginny gasped. _They would never do that. They love you!_

_I wouldn't want to, of course. But if it's the only way to be with you, then that's how it will be. _He pulled Ginny close in a hug. _They're never gonna separate us. I promise._

_I know. _She smiled now, a mischievous glint in her eye. _And if they try, we'll run away together. _

Even though she said it teasingly, he knew that if it ever came to it, that they probably would. _That would be nice. Let's worry about it tomorrow. They'll tell us what it's about then._ Mentally comforted, he lay back down on the sofa and she curled up next to him.

_Goodnight, _she said in a tender voice.

_Sleep tight, Ginny._

"WAKE UP, EVERYONE! IT'S CHRISTMAS!"

_Aargh__,_ groaned Harry. _What's with all the noise?_ He sat upright and rubbed the sleep out of his eyes. When he was sufficiently awake, he looked at the clock. _It's only six! You've got to be kidding me._

Ginny sat up next to him, her hair all tousled. _Ron,_ she sighed. _He has done this every Christmas for as long as I can remember. He _really_ likes his presents._

_Well, I like them too, but _that _is just a bit extreme I think._

_Maybe, but that's Ron, _she said as if that explained everything. She looked at him. _You know, I don't think I ever slept that good before._

_Yeah, me too,_ Harry answered. Then he sighed with a rue smile on his face. _I don't suppose your mum will let us do this again?_

Ginny chuckled. _I wouldn't bet on it. If we suggested that she'd probably lock us each in our own room for the rest of the holidays. _She stretched and stood up. _I'm gonna wash up a bit. Be right back._

Harry leaned back in the sofa staring at the many fairies fluttering from branch to branch in the Christmas tree. He felt completely rested, even though he and Ginny hadn't shared dream together last night. It was strange, though. While at Hogwarts, they had one almost every night and but since he was back at the Burrow he only had one so far. And that was the first evening. After that, they didn't have any. What was even stranger was that normally he only felt completely rested after they had a dream together. When they didn't, he felt like a zombie in the morning; at least he did at Hogwarts. But tonight, he felt more rested than he ever had before and they hadn't dreamed together this time. He relayed his thoughts to Ginny.

_I noticed too,_ she replied. _I don't know what it means, though._

Harry thought about it for a moment. _Maybe - Maybe the dream is somehow to … compensate when we're not together in the day. Remember the first time? It was after your birthday and I only saw you in the morning and in the evening. All day you were occupied with the guests and the presents and we barely had time together all day._

_Of course I remember. You gave me this beautiful bracelet. I still haven't taken it off since then._

Her remark made him smile inside but he pressed on. _And then we dream together almost every night at Hogwarts. But now we're back together at the Burrow and no more dreams._

_I don't know what's going on, Harry. I miss the dreams a bit but it's nicer to have you here in person. Oh, Ron's on his way down._

And sure enough, a few seconds later, a very excited person dropped down on the sofa next to Harry. "Morning, Harry. Look at how much presents I've got!"

Harry looked to the side and saw Ron sitting there with a fairly large heap of brightly wrapped presents on his lap.

"That's great," Harry responded smiling at his friend's enthusiasm. "Why haven't you opened them yet?"

"Mum insists that we open them all together on Christmas morning." Ron made a face that displayed his annoyance at having to wait. "She says it's a family thing. Get your presents and tell the others to hurry up. I hate waiting."

Harry smiled and did just that. He bounded up the stairs to his room and was pleasantly surprised when he saw that his stack of present was at least as large as Ron's. He was now almost as eager as Ron to dive into the packages. After gathering his presents together, he mentally nudged Ginny to hurry up and headed back downstairs.

The other Weasley brothers safe Percy were already downstairs, all of them except Ron with sleepy faces and mussed up hair.

"Have you seen the others? Are they on the way?" Ron asked impatiently.

"Ron! Relax! Your presents aren't going to run away," Charlie said exasperated. "Except maybe the one from the twins. You never know what they have come up with this year." He turned to Harry with a small smile on his face. "Keep in mind to be careful when you open their present, Harry. I recommend opening it with a long stick or something."

The twins looked shocked and Harry chuckled. He and Ginny had expected something like that and while the twins were out yesterday, they had searched for their present and used Molly's wand to render it harmless. A simple _finite_ was all it took. "I sorta figured that already," Harry said still smiling. "Don't worry. I'll be careful. Besides, they should worry about ours," he added with a smirk that made Fred and George look uncomfortable.

"Good morning," Arthur said cheerfully when he appeared in the living room with the other three remaining members of the family in tow. "Happy Christmas, everyone."

A chorus of return wishes broke out and soon everyone was seated in the living room with their own stack of presents in front of him. The Weasley children were all staring expectantly at their father to give the start sign.

"As professor Dumbledore would say, tuck in!" Arthur said happily and tore into his presents with an exuberance a two year old would be proud of.

Molly just shook her head and joined in, if just a bit more controlled. She looked a bit uncomfortable when she saw that Harry and Ginny had pooled together for their presents, but she didn't comment on it. It reminded the two kids briefly of the talk that was coming later that day, but they pushed it from their minds forcefully and concentrated on the happiness of opening their presents.

Harry was very happy with his presents. He got a nice homemade green jumper with a large red letter 'H' on it from Molly. Looking up he saw that the others had also gotten similar ones and upon seeing them putting theirs on, Harry did so as well. Though, as he was pulling his over his head, he did hear Ron muttering about 'Maroon again'. As for Arthur, Bill and Charlie they had gotten him some high quality Seeker gloves. Percy had gotten him a new quill (again), while from Ron and Neville he got a very nice Wizard Chess set. It would certainly be better than playing with Seamus's old pieces all the time; they didn't trust him one bit – with reason – and most of the time Harry had to threaten the pieces to get them to move. From Hermione he got – of course – a book. It wasn't on Transfiguration or anything like that, like he had expected, but it was, instead, a brilliant description of the best Seeker moves known to Wizarding kind. It even had moving pictures that showed him how to do them.

The twins looked on expectantly as Harry started on their present. Harry just smiled and made a show of opening it. The twins were dumbstruck when nothing happened. Their eyes grew even bigger as Ginny gave a squeak of delight when she saw the nice scarf the twins had bought her, but didn't get pranked in the meantime. Charlie, Bill, Ron and Arthur on the other hand did get pranked. They were all sporting huge Dumbledore-like white beards and were laughing at each other. Percy was saved this year; apparently Fred and George did listen to their father occasionally. Harry gave the twins a wink before turning back to his present.

He was pleasantly surprised with the small book that came out of the package. It was some sort of diary. It contained detailed accounts of all the pranks Fred and George had pulled in their first year at Hogwarts. There, however, was a note with it that it was his duty to add some of his own to it by the end of the year. He thanked them profusely and turned to his next present.

Ginny had gotten him a thick, battered second hand book on Potion making. When he looked questioningly at her, she said, "I know you have a little trouble with Potions, so I thought it could help." Mentally she added, _Check out page 276._

Harry turned to the page she indicated and barely contained a gasp when he saw the page. It had the step by step recipe on the 'Animagus Revealer Potion'.

She smiled at him. _I know how much it appealed to you to become an Animagus. This is the first step. It looks pretty difficult to make, so make sure you pay attention in Snape's class._

Harry grinned while scanning over the recipe. _This is great. It looks difficult, but I think if I practice a bit that I can make it. I kinda like making Potions and I'm pretty good, even if Snape still doesn't give me good marks._ He paused when something caught his eye. _Oh… The twins are starting on our present._

And indeed at the other side of the room the two pranksters were looking apprehensively at a bright red package in front of them. Fred poked it once only to pull his finger back just as fast, but it just lay there doing nothing. George bent over it closely and Harry just saw the pale yellow flash of a _finite incantatem_ performed on the package and Ginny informed him that she caught George covertly slipping his mum's wand back into the front pocket of her apron.

Harry smiled inwardly when the twins proceeded opening the package. They found a small wooden box inside with the inscription_ Box of Pranks._ They smiled broadly and hurriedly threw open the lid.

Big mistake…

The next moment both of them were covered from head to toe in a white powder, blinking owlishly in surprise.

Silence in the room for a few seconds. Then everyone broke out into laughter, even Percy. The twins were royally pranked. The laughter grew when the two victims started scratching themselves everywhere they could reach.

_The Muggle itching powder really does its job, doesn't it? _Ginny commented. Harry was too doubled up to respond.

When he finally regained his composure, he saw Arthur taking pity on the twins and vanishing the offending powder.

Fred looked to George and sighed theatrically. "They got us, dearest brother."

His twin looked back and sighed even louder. "That they did. I believe I still have some powder in a very uncomfortable spot." He squirmed a bit in his seat to illustrate his point, which prompted a new round of laughter in the living room.

"How did you do that?" Fred finally asked when the room was quiet again. "We checked and there was no magic in the package whatsoever."

Harry smiled evilly and answered, "Muggle prank. I don't understand exactly how it works but it's got something to do with a lot of air packed together with the powder in the box." He reached for a present that he had kept hidden between his own presents. "Here. This is your real present."

The twins smiled and opened it quickly. It was a Muggle book titled '1001 pranks'. Fred and George looked at each other and immediately opened it and began reading, their other presents forgotten.

Harry had one more present to open. It didn't have a nametag, so he had saved that one for last. He opened it and a soft, shiny, silvery fabric slid out of the paper. Harry caught it just before it hit the ground and held it up. It looked like a cloak of some kind.

Bill drew in a sharp breath as he saw what Harry was holding. "That's an invisibility cloak!" he exclaimed amazed.

"Wow! Those are really rare," Ron said with more than a little envy in his voice.

"Think of all the pranking you will get done with that!" Fred and George shouted together, followed by an angry, "Boys!!" coming from their mother.

"Try it on, Harry," Ginny urged.

He did just that. He swung the cloak around his shoulders and sure enough his entire body safe his head disappeared into nothingness.

"Wicked!" Ron admired loudly.

Harry put the hood on his head and vanished completely from sight. "This is amazing," his disembodied voice said.

"Who is it from?" Arthur asked curious.

Harry put the cloak back down and looked through the wrappings for a clue. He found a note, but it didn't make him any wiser. "It doesn't say who it's from. It only says it used to belong to my father." Harry looked at the cloak in wonder. He had something that had belonged to his father. It was the first and only thing he had that used to belong to his real parents. He knew then and there that he would treasure this cloak for the rest of his life.

Charlie left after breakfast to go back to Romania and Bill left just after lunch to go to Gringotts to get a new assignment. He and his team had just finished their job in Egypt last week. Bill was hoping for a destination other than Egypt , but he didn't have much hope. There were still a huge amount of unexplored tombs out there that his bosses wanted to excavate.

After little bit later found Harry and Ginny sitting together in the living room. Harry was attempting to do his homework and Ginny was playing with her new hairclip – a Christmas gift from Harry – while she was trying to read a book, but neither of them could concentrate on it. Arthur and Molly had said they would talk to them today about their 'situation', but they hadn't so far. In fact, both of them had pretended like nothing was wrong this morning.

It wasn't hard for the two kids to join in pretending amidst the presents and the laughter. But now that the house was quiet again, they felt nervous in anticipation of the talk they knew would come.

And sure enough, around three o'clock, Arthur and Molly walked into the living room and sat down in the sofa across from the one the kids were sitting in.

"Can you put your books away? We'd like to talk to you two for a minute," Arthur began.

Harry and Ginny did just that and slid a bit closer together in their nervousness.

Arthur was wringing his hands, no doubt wondering just how to begin. "Harry, Ginny," he started a bit nervously but broke off again, searching for the right words. "Boy, this is a conversation I didn't want to have for a few more years," he murmured to himself just loud enough for the others to hear. "Molly and I have been watching you two these past few days and we couldn't help but notice how close the two of you are."

He paused and took a long look at the two kids in front of him. They had sat a little ways apart when the conversation began, but they were drawn closer to each other in their nervousness. They hadn't even realised that they had linked hands somewhere during the conversation.

After clearing his throat, Arthur continued. "Are we correct to assume there is more than friendship between the two of you?" he asked.

_What do we tell him? _Harry asked with more than a little nervousness in his mental voice.

_The truth would be best I guess,_ Ginny responded mentally. _But we don't say anything about our special connection. _Then she answered her dad's question out loud. "We like each other very much," she stated simply.

"So we thought," Arthur said with a sad sort of smile on his face. "We know that if the two of you really want to be a … a couple, that we probably can't stop you. But there are some things we have to talk to you about before you do."

_Here we go, _Harry thought. _We'll finally know why your mum is having so much problems with us holding hands and stuff._

Arthur shifted in his seat. "When you first came to live with us this summer, Harry, we adopted you. That means we made you legally a part of this family, in all possible aspects except for your last name. That makes us legally your parents, you our son, Ron and the other boys your brothers and Ginny … your sister."

Harry felt like he was dumped in a bathtub filled with ice cubes when he realised the full impact of that beautiful gesture done by the Weasleys.

_You… My sister? That means we can't be together,_ Harry panicked. Ginny just sat there in shocked silence, not even thinking anything.

"I'm sure the two of you realise what this means, don't you?" Arthur asked.

"We can't be together," Ginny stated in a weak voice.

"True," Arthur admitted. "Legally you can't marry when you're older."

"We can't be together," Ginny repeated, now with tears starting to form in the corners of her eyes.

"Now, don't go panicking, princess. If you two are meant to be together, you will be. I promise you," Arthur said soothingly ignoring Molly's raised eyebrow.

Harry remembered the conversation Arthur and Molly had last night and asked the question. "How?"

An hour later Harry and Ginny were sitting together in her room, their minds a swirl of thoughts. Arthur was right last night. Neither of them liked the solution Arthur had. Harry ran his hand through his hair in his turmoiled state, messing it up more than it was before and sighed deeply.

Ginny took his hand and softly squeezed it. _What are you thinking?_

_I don't know what to think,_ Harry responded honestly._ I mean, I didn't have a family for so long and now I do and it's everything I ever wanted._

_But…_Ginny prodded gently.

Harry smiled weakly and looked in her eyes. _But… it means nothing if we can't be together. I mean, all I've ever wanted was a family, but if I have to choose now between you and your family, it's an easy choice. I'd give it all up for you._

_Well, you don't have to think about it now. Dad said he wouldn't do anything until we're older and we're sure we want to be together. _She tucked her hair behind her ear and leaned against Harry. _As if we ever wouldn't want to be._

_We know that, _Harry answered while automatically wrapping his arm around her waist. _But they don't know about our … 'special circumstances'._

_It doesn't matter now anyway. You're leaving again in nine days and we won't see each other again for like five months._

They were sitting in an uncomfortable silence for a while, but then Ginny spoke again. _I think we should follow dad's advice. There's no need to worry about it now. Let's just act like really good friends until we're older. We'll keep the handholding and stuff for in private. And maybe we'll get lucky and someone you really like will want to take over the adoption._

_You're right of course, _Harry answered sighing.

_Of course I am, _Ginny responded in a haughty voice. _You should know by now that I'm always right._

Harry smiled. _Oh, really?_

_Yes, really._

_And what about the time you thought it was a good idea to turn Scabbers pink?_

_How was I supposed to know that the rat was smart enough to tell Ron that I did it?_ she asked in a mock offended voice._ All he ever does is eat and sleep and then when I play a prank on him, suddenly he's smart enough to rat me out. _Harry laughed at the unintended pun._ Don't laugh, _Ginny threatened. _I got cleaning duty for a week because of that._

They fell silent again while both smiled at the memory of a pink Scabbers and a horrified Ron. Ginny had effectively turned the mood and Harry hugged her gratefully a bit tighter.

_Thanks, Gin._

_Anytime, Harry. Anytime._

**AN:** Just some clarifacation. The brother/sister issue will be readressed later (begin year two) with some more explanation as to why it is legally impossible for them to marry. Just bear with the story an all will be explained in time.


	10. Chapter 10: Flamel

A/N: Still not mine, as I'm sure all of you know.

Thanks to etj4eagle for all his help.

Enjoy!

**Chapter 10: Flamel**

"Hurry up, Harry. The train is about to leave!" Ron said, running as fast as he could through the barrier to platform nine and three-quarters.

Harry followed his friend and together they made it onto the train just in time, with the train's whistle sounding and it beginning to move only moments after they boarded it.

_See you in June! _Ginny mentally called out from the platform as she madly waved at the departing train, a wave that Harry enthusiastically returned.

"Well, we better find Hermione and Neville," Harry said to Ron once the platform was out of sight before starting to drag his trunk through the train, checking the compartments for the familiar faces of their friends. Not too long after, he found them and a broad smile formed on his face as he entered.

"Hi Harry, Ron! Happy New Year!" Hermione squealed and gave the two of them a hug. Neville behind her rolled his eyes at her antics and settled for a handshake and a much more controlled "how you've been?"

"Oh, we're great," Ron replied smiling. "We've had a very good holiday, loads of presents. How about the two of you?"

"It was ok. My gran dragged me to some sort of high society function on New Year's Eve. Boring as hell and worst of all, Malfoy was there," Neville said making a disgusted face. "They made me sit next to him and act civilly all evening. Worst night of my life." The others groaned and threw him sympathetic looks.

"I had a great time in Paris with my parents," Hermione said next. "We saw the Eiffel tower and we went to the Louvre and the Arc de Triomphe. And, then we went to the Wizarding section of Paris and it was so great. It has loads of shops and it's even bigger then Diagon Alley."

_And she's off again,_ Ginny commented in Harry's head, causing him to smother a snort.

Ginny was right, though and soon Hermione was regaling them with an in depth description of how 'Rue de l'Hyppogriffe' and 'Rue du Phénix' looked like. Though after a minute or five of listening to Hermione, Harry tuned her out and reflected on the holidays. He had had an amazing time back at the Burrow. For the first time in his life he really felt like he belonged somewhere. He had a family and it felt incredible. It was a feeling he never wanted to loose – the feeling of a place where he would always be welcome no matter what.

But then suddenly that happiness became overshadowed by what Arthur had told him and Ginny on Christmas. It hadn't taken him long to see why the wonderful thing of him being adopted by the Weasleys had a bad side. Luckily Molly and mostly Arthur were very understanding about his relationship with Ginny. Arthur went even as far as supplying them with a solution for if they really wanted to be together, even if he didn't really like it. He could just as easily have forbidden Harry and Ginny to pursue a relationship considering he was now legally Harry's father. Instead he explained them the situation and offered them some advice, which Harry and Ginny chose to follow, for now. From now on they were just acting like really good friends until they were a bit older. They were still too young to have a real romantic relationship after all. They could address the problem at a later time in their lives and so, for the remainder of the holidays they did just that and neither them nor the parents brought up the subject again.

"- and Harry got an invisibility cloak," Harry heard Ron saying suddenly. Harry's head jerked up at the sound of his name and he saw Hermione and Neville looking at him with awe in their eyes.

"Really? An invisibility cloak?" Hermione gushed. "They are really rare, those. Can we see it?"

Harry smiled and said, "Sure. Let me get it," before getting up and taking it out of his trunk. Then draping it around his shoulders his friends saw just his head floating in there in the air.

"Wicked!" Neville reacted in an unintended copy of Ron's reaction at Christmas.

"That _is_ amazing," Hermione said touching the soft fabric of the cloak.

"Yeah, I know. It was my father's." The adoration was palpable in his voice. Carefully, almost reverently he put the cloak back in his trunk.

Hermione got a thoughtful look on her face. "You know. We could put that cloak to real good use. We still haven't found anything about Flamel."

"And…" Harry prodded not really liking the direction of the conversation.

"And we could use it to look through - " she glanced to the door and her voice dropped to a whisper "- through the restricted section of the library."

Harry sighed. "I don't know Hermione. I don't want it confiscated if they catch us. It's the only thing I have of my parents."

"It's an invisibility cloak! How are we going to get caught?" she shot back.

"I never thought I'd see the day that Hermione would be pushing us to break the rules," Ron remarked with a bit of a proud look on his face.

"Well, Harry? Will you do it?" Hermione said ignoring Ron.

Looking at the eager expression on Hermione's face, Harry found it hard to say no. But then again, his cloak was very important to him. He just couldn't risk it to satisfy her curiosity. "I'll think about it," he finally said not really planning to.

From there the talk in the compartment died out and everyone soon found something else to spend the time with. Harry and Ron started a game of chess with Neville watching and helping Harry try to defeat Ron while Hermione took out a book.

* * *

BANG!

The door of their compartment was thrown open and a volley of spells made their way in before any of the occupants had the time to react. Harry was hit with a painful stinging hex, but just barely managed to dodge a second spell that he vaguely recognised as the Jelly-Legs Jinx. Hermione got hit with a weird curse that caused her lips to grow together and Ron went down hit by a stunner. Only Neville was spared because Harry was sitting in the line of fire. Harry quickly recovered from the stinging hex and pulled his wand to defend himself. Neville was a bit faster since he wasn't hit and immediately managed to get one of the attackers with the Bat-Bogey Hex. A girl's voice shrieked in response.

It was only then that Harry recognised his attackers. Malfoy stood there flanked by his usual two cronies and the screaming girl that Harry knew to be Pansy Parkinson. Apparently, Malfoy hadn't gotten over his humiliation during the train ride home and had decided to enact revenge upon Harry and his friends. Realizing this, anger flared in Harry's veins. This was a cowardly attack and he could not - no, would not - tolerate that.

A new volley of spells erupted from the attackers, but a strong Protego by Harry protected them with the spells bouncing off in random directions, one of the ricochets clipping Crabbe's shoulder who promptly fell down unconscious. Retaliating, Harry shot a 'Furnunculus' back at Malfoy whose skin immediately erupted in huge painful boils all over his body. Harry followed it up with a Jelly-Legs, which caused Malfoy to topple over on his back, and finally finished him off with another Bat-Bogey on Ginny's insistence. In the meantime, Neville had hit Goyle with a stunner. Then turning his attention to Parkinson who was still screaming from Neville's Bat-Bogey hex, he hit her with a stunner before walking over to where Malfoy was laying on the ground.

"You cowardly piece of shit!" Harry growled with his eyes flashing angrily. "Don't you ever attack me or my friends again! _Stupefy_," he snarled having to resist the urge to kick Malfoy in the ribs.

_Are you ok, Harry?_ a concerned Ginny asked him.

Rubbing his arm where the stinger had hit and winced a bit, Harry replied, _Just a little sore, Gin. Nothing serious. _Then turning his attention back to their attackers, Harry started levitating them out of the compartment, while Neville went out in search of the Head Boy or the Head Girl. Hearing a muffled moan from his left and feeling someone pull on his sleeve, Harry turned and saw for the first time the effects of the curse that Malfoy had hit his friend with.

"Hang on, Hermione," Harry said, before pointing his wand and saying, "_Finite Incantatem." _However, to his dismay there was no reaction whatsoever. Instead, he could only watch as Hermione's fear began to get the best of her as her fingers desperately searched the skin where her mouth was before. Thankfully, it was not long after Harry's failed spell that Neville re-entered the compartment followed closely by the Head Boy as well as the witch that pushed the trolley with snacks.

"Oh my! What happened here?" the witch asked concerned in a high pitched voice, before quickly reviving Ron and then moving over to Hermione.

"Wha- what happened," Ron groaned, sitting up shakily. He had a large bump on his forehead from where he had hit his chessboard.

"Malfoy wanted revenge for the ride home I guess," Harry responded his anger evident in his voice. "We managed to get them, but they got Hermione with a nasty spell. I can't seem to reverse it."

"Bloody hell," Ron cursed when he saw Hermione. "Does it hurt, Hermione?" he asked in an unnaturally concerned voice. She shook her head in denial. "Don't worry; we'll fix you in no time."

Neville turned to the Head Boy. "This guy -" he snarled pointing at Malfoy. "- came in and attacked us together with his friends. We defended ourselves and we managed to stun them all." He sounded distinctly proud by that fact.

"That's right," Harry confirmed. "But they got Hermione with some weird sort of curse and I can't seem to reverse it," he added with a little desperation in his voice. "I tried a 'Finite' and a 'Finite Incantatem' but it doesn't go away."

The witch started trying to reverse the curse on Hermione while the Head Boy got out his wand and said, "Let's see what their story is." Stepping out of the compartment, he enervated Malfoy and waited for the boy to catch his bearings. Malfoy's eyes shot up and met the questioning and slightly angry ones of the Head Boy.

"They - They attacked us," Malfoy stammered out immediately pointing straight at Harry. "We just walked past and they hexed us. We couldn't do a thing."

"Really?" the Head Boy asked sceptically. "Then who cursed - Hermione was it, right? Then who cursed Hermione?"

"They did themselves. They are trying to trick us," Malfoy lied desperately. It really didn't sound convincing, though, and Harry was pleased to hear a note of panic in his voice.

"Let's see about that," the Head Boy said. He picked up Malfoy's wand and pointed his own at it. "_Priori Incantatem_." A grey mist rose from the wand. First it flashed red and Harry thought that might have been the stunner Malfoy had shot. After that a mouth formed in the mist with the lips gradually disappearing. "It seams like you are the one who cursed Hermione." He did the same with the other wands and noted down all the spells that were used by those involved on a piece of parchment. When he was done, he said, "You are all confined to your compartments until we reach Hogsmeade. I will take the matters up to your Heads of House and the appropriate actions will be taken."

In the meantime the witch had managed to reverse the damage done to Hermione and had left escorting the four attackers back to their compartment. Hermione was currently checking her reflection in the window to see if everything had returned to normal. Seeing nothing amiss, she sighed in relief and sunk back in her seat.

"Are you ok, Hermione?" Neville asked, dropping himself into the seat next to her.

"I am now. It was so frustrating, not being able to talk, I mean," Hermione answered still a bit upset. She touched her lips again as if to check as everything was still there. "I couldn't even help you guys."

"I really hope he gets expelled," Ron stated his ears red in anger.

Harry sighed. "I wouldn't bet on it. It's his Head of House that will have to decide what his punishment is. I wouldn't be surprised if Snape just lets him get away with it."

"No, me either. Bloody Slytherins," Ron cursed and for once Hermione didn't even correct him.

Neville shrugged. "Yeah, well. Nothing we can do about it now. Let's forget about it. We'll see tonight. Here Ron, have a Chocolate Frog."

This calmed Ron down sufficiently and he happily opened it and swallowed the Frog in one bite. Then he took the card. "Too bad. Dumbledore again," he said disappointed. "Still no Agrippa. I'm starting to believe that card doesn't exist. How many Chocolate Frogs do I have to eat before I finally get her?"

Harry laughed at this. "I don't know, Ron. With the amount of Frogs you eat in a day, I would have expected you had her like twenty times already."

Ron just shrugged. "Well, this is the twenty-sixth Dumbledore I've got. Anybody want it?"

"Sure," Neville responded. "I'll take it. I don't have any at home, because my gran never lets me eat sweets. I think it might be fun to begin collecting too."

"Catch!" Ron threw the card across the compartment towards Neville. The latter was too slow to catch it and the card bounced of on his forehead. "Woops, sorry," Ron said sheepishly.

"Thanks, Ron," Neville said sarcastically while rubbing the sore spot on his face. Then he looked at the card he just got and read the text on the back. His eyes went wide and he read the card four times before slumping back in his seat. "I've found him," he whispered shocked.

"What?" Hermione asked distractedly while searching her bag for a new book to read.

"Flamel! I've found him," Neville exclaimed a bit louder.

Hermione dropped her book bag and jumped up. "You have? Really? Tell me! Tell me!" she demanded looking ready to drag it out of him. She started crossing the compartment to get closer to Neville but lost her balance on the way through. With a thump she fell and ended up on top of Neville knocking him and her to the ground.

Harry and Ron burst out laughing as the two tried to get themselves back up. "Easy there, Hermione," Ron smiled helping her back in her seat. "He'd probably tell you without you knocking it out of him."

"I'm not sure if I want to, anymore," Neville commented with a shudder. "I don't know much and if she wants to know more I could get hurt."

"Sorry about that, Neville," Hermione apologised. There was silence for two seconds before she spoke again. "Now, are you going to tell me or what?"

Neville looked hesitant but the corners of his mouth were twitching. "You're not going to hurt me?"

"Of course not… If you tell me."

"Oh, fine. Here, Hermione," Neville said taking out the card and giving it to her.

She knocked it to the side and continued her glaring. "I don't want no Chocolate Frog card. I want you to tell me what you know about Flamel!" she said in a deadly cold voice.

"'Mione. Read the back," Neville said hurriedly.

"What?"

"On the back, Hermione," Neville repeated thrusting the card back in her hand.

She shot him a questioning look and finally accepted the card from him and started reading. Her eyes scanned the card and then almost bulged out of their sockets. "You _did _find him. I almost thought you were just messing with me," she said excited. "Alchemy! Oh, I know just what book I need. I've seen it before we left Hogwarts for the holidays, but I wasn't allowed to take it home with me so I left it in the library. Oh, I _really_ need to go to the library. Are we there yet?" She was effectively bouncing in her seat by now.

"I knew I shouldn't have said anything 'til we were at Hogwarts," Neville said sighing.

"And getting hexed because you held out on her? Better you than me, mate," Ron said shaking his head. "Oy, Hermione. Could you please relax? It's still a while until we get to Hogwarts."

Hermione humphed and sank down in her seat. For the rest of the trip she just sat there staring out of the window and nervously tapping her foot.

* * *

They arrived at the school just before dinner time. Hermione wanted to check out the library immediately, but the others managed to drag her to the Great Hall for the feast. Unfortunately, her patience was tested beyond just waiting till the end of dinner, as following the end of the meal they were approached by professor McGonagall.

"Mr. Potter, Mr. Longbottom, Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger," her stern voice called out. "Your presence is required in the Headmaster's office. We would like to discuss this afternoon's… incident with all involved parties. Please follow me." She led the group through the corridors and up the stairs to the – to Harry – familiar hallway with the stone gargoyle at the end. She spoke the password and they took the revolving stairway to the top.

Upstairs Snape was waiting with the four Slytherins and he sneered maliciously at the Gryffindors when they entered. To the side the Head Boy was standing, probably waiting to give testimony of what had happened afterwards. Dumbledore was sitting behind his desk wearing a smile and a happy twinkle in his eyes.

"Good evening Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger and you too, Mr. Longbottom," he greeted jovially. "So good of you to join us. Please sit down. All of you." Dumbledore waved his wand and chairs for everyone materialised in the office. After everyone had found a seat, he continued. "I heard you had a minor scuffle on the way here. Could you please tell me what happened, Miss Granger."

Hermione started at being addressed personally but quickly described what had happened. "Well, we were sitting in our compartment and suddenly Draco, Pansy, er… Crabbe and Goyle -" Here Hermione flushed, probably for not knowing Crabbe and Goyle's first names since no-one addressed them by those. "- entered our compartment with their wands out and started hexing us. Ron got stunned immediately, I got hit with a hex that sort of glued my lips together and I think Harry got hit with a stinging hex. Neville didn't get hit. Together, Harry and Neville managed to defend themselves and eventually they stunned them all."

"I see. And may I ask what your story is, Mr. Malfoy?" Dumbledore asked next shifting his gaze to the blonde boy.

"She's lying," Malfoy managed to get out looking very pale. "We didn't do anything. They attacked us. We were just walking by."

"Does anyone of you have any witnesses?"

Both groups of kids shook their heads.

"Mr. Taylor. You checked the wands of our students. What did you find out?"

The Head-Boy cleared his throat and started listing his findings. "Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger didn't fire a single spell. Mr. Potter first cast a shield charm, followed by the 'furnunculus' curse and a Jelly-Legs jinx. Then a spell I don't know."

"Bat-Bogey hex," Harry interrupted.

"Right. A Bat-Bogey hex, apparently. Then a few stunners and finally a few reversal charms, probably to try and counter that hex on Miss Granger. Mr. Longbottom did a … Bat-Bogey hex, followed by a stunner.

"Mr. Malfoy first cast a Lip-Locker hex, which hit Miss Granger, followed by a stunner and a cutting curse. Miss Parkinson only cast a Stinging hex. Mr. Crabbe cast a Jelly-Legs jinx followed by a stunner and Mr. Goyle cast two stunners."

"Thank you, Mr. Taylor," Dumbledore said. He pondered for a few moments while absently moving his fingers through his long beard. "The evidence suggests that our Slytherin students instigated this confrontation," Dumbledore said, causing said students immediately to begin protesting. "However, as there are no impartial witnesses to this event, this can not be proven beyond doubt. All that is proven is who participated in this fight. Since fighting is clearly against school rules, all those involved will have to serve a week of detentions." All of the students groaned at this news. "Only Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger will be excused from this, as they have not fired a single spell. Please report with Mr. Filch after dinner starting tomorrow. Any questions?"

_You're getting punished for defending yourself? _Ginny screamed outraged in his head.

Harry sighed deeply before mumbling, "No, professor."

"Very well, report to professor Sprout for your detentions. You'll probably be helping in the greenhouses," Dumbledore said giving a discreet wink to Neville, whose eyes lighted up at the prospect of spending a large amount working in his favourite place of the school. "Very well, off you go. I'm sure you can all use a good night's sleep after such a long and tiresome day."

The students mumbled their goodbyes and set of towards their common rooms accompanied by their Heads of Houses.

_I don't understand, _Ginny said miserably. _He's punishing you for defending yourself! He's basically saying you should let yourself get hexed next time instead of fighting back._

_I do, _Harry replied. _I don't like it, but I do understand. He didn't have any concrete evidence that Malfoy and his friends started this fight. Well, he did have evidence, but it was all - what's the word? - circumstantial evidence. And he _had_ to punish Malfoy and the others for fighting, because otherwise they would just do it again the next time. And, because he didn't have any real evidence as to who started the fight…_

_He had to punish all of you, _Ginny finished. _Right... That doesn't make it fair, though._

_I know. But at least the detentions won't be so bad. He could have assigned them with Filch or Snape or something._

In the meantime they had arrived in the common room. Harry wanted to talk a bit more with his friends about what happened, but under the stern glare from professor McGonagall, all retreated to their dorms.

_I still think they need more punishment, _Ginny said while Harry prepared for bed. The mischievous tone of her voice created a smile on Harry's face.

_I agree. Planning tonight?_

_Sure thing. See you in a few minutes!_

_Sweet dreams…_

* * *

Harry woke up the next morning, feeling refreshed. He and Ginny had spent a large portion of the night brainstorming on ways to get back at Malfoy and his cronies. They had a few good ones, but they needed some assistance in carrying them out. And they knew just where to find it.

After waking up Ron, by repeatedly whacking him on the head with his pillow, Harry took a quick shower before heading down with his friends, Neville had awoken on his own. When they arrived down in the common room it was to find that Hermione was already there, at one of the tables, reading an enormous book. She was reading frantically through the book trying to sate her almost insatiable thirst for knowledge and as such she didn't even notice when Ron, Harry and Neville plopped down in seats close to her.

"Morning, Hermione," Neville greeted loudly trying to coax some reaction from the girl.

Nothing…

"HERMIONE!" Harry said a little louder.

Still nothing…

Finally, Ron had enough and in one swift motion he slammed the book shut she was reading in.

"HEY!" she screamed, startled, before turning her gaze to Ron and asking angrily. "What was that for?"

"Finally, some reaction," Ron sighed sinking back in his seat. "We've been trying to get your attention for _ages_. What's so interesting about that book anyway?"

"Oh," Hermione said and deflated, before her eyes gleamed again in excitement. "Well, I woke up early today and went to the library to find that book on Alchemy I told you about yesterday. And I found him!" She opened the book again and quickly turned to the right page. "Here! Nicholas Flamel. There's a whole section about him. It's so interesting. Do you know he invented over three hundred different potions including…"

"Hermione," Ron interrupted groaning. "Just tell us what Dumbledore's hiding here. We don't need to know all that."

"Right. Sorry. Flamel is the only known maker of the Philosophers Stone," she said as if that explained everything.

Neville's eyes betrayed a flash of recognition but Harry and Ron were both clueless.

_The Philosophers Stone! No wonder someone is trying to steal it, _Ginny said.

_You know what it is?_

_Of course! It's …_

However, before Ginny could explain Hermione launched into a long and very detailed speech about the stone and its properties. Listening to the spiel, the three boys shared a small exasperated smile with each other, but they let the bushy-haired girl finish her lecture.

"So, it's a stone that can change any metal into gold and can create the 'elixir of life' which makes the drinker live longer," Harry surmised.

"Yes, that's what I said, wasn't it?" Hermione said looking at him funnily.

"That and about a million other words," Ron grumbled quietly.

Hermione still heard him and huffed. "I was just giving you some interesting background information. If you don't want to know, then just don't listen."

"Fine, fine," Ron conceded not really wanting to fight so early in the morning.

"So who do you think is trying to steal the stone?" Neville asked.

"Snape," Ron said with more than a little venom in his voice. "I'm sure it's that good for nothing Slytherin."

"I don't think so," Harry said pensive. "Remember on Hallowe'en with the troll and Fluffy and all? I … er … _someone_ pranked him that evening and I doubt he would have tried to steal the stone wearing a pumpkin on his head."

Ron sniggered silently as he relived the image, while Hermione nodded in agreement. "It _has _to be someone that was already in the castle," she reasoned ignoring Harry's slight slip-of-the-tongue. "It says in 'Hogwarts: A History' that no one can cross the wards without permission from the Headmaster. So it had to be either someone on the staff or a student."

"I think it's Quirrell," Harry said. He had been thinking about it over the last few months and was now sure that he was the one responsible. But as usual, he only had suspicions.

"Quirrell? The guy's probably afraid of his breakfast. He would faint just seeing Fluffy," Ron said with rolling eyes.

"I'm pretty sure," Harry replied, "but I don't have proof." He then started to explain all the things he had noticed about the professor.

"So you think he's trying to steal the stone for someone else? It could be," Hermione admitted. "It certainly looks that way, if you heard right that day."

Ron stretched and stood up. "I still think it's Snape, but you guys can speculate all you want. I'm hungry and I'm going to have breakfast before there isn't any left."

The others laughed and followed the redhead to the Great Hall.

* * *

Classes that day continued just in much the same vein as they had been last term, except that Snape seemed to have regained some of his venom over the holidays. The snide remarks and insults at Harry's address had returned, but he kept them quiet enough so that nobody else overheard him. It made Harry a bit upset, but he expected that he would have been much more affected if it wasn't for Ginny soothing him in his head.

Herbology afterwards also helped him in dealing with his anger. They were handling Singing Lily's and the song of the beautiful flowers really relaxed him. So much so, that in History that afternoon he drifted away into a very nice nap.

The evening came soon and Harry and Neville were getting ready for their detentions.

"It's not fair," Hermione said sadly. "They attacked us and you only defended yourself. You shouldn't have detention."

"I know, Hermione," Harry sighed. "But like I explained, Dumbledore didn't really have a choice."

"But…"

"He even made sure it would be a nicer detention for us then for the Slytherins. You know how much Neville here enjoys it in the greenhouses," Harry said playfully thumping Neville on the back.

"Maybe Sprout'll even teach us something," Neville agreed eagerly.

Harry laughed. "She might. Come on, Neville. We don't want to be late."

They said their goodbyes and soon were heading to the first of their detentions. Harry had to laugh at the eager look on Neville's face. It was not often somebody looked so happy going to detention. They arrived there at the same time as the four Slytherins who threw them some ugly looks, but nobody said anything. The tasks they had to do were curiously distributed. While Malfoy and his friends had to mix fertilizers in Greenhouse Two, Harry and Neville had to prune some of the tamer plants in Greenhouse Three, to the very obvious delight of Neville. Professor Sprout told them in a conspiratory whisper not to let anyone know about the easy detentions. Obviously, the two Gryffindors gladly agreed.

A few hours later they were dismissed. Back in the common room, Neville went straight to bed. Harry on the other hand had some business to attend to with two identical redheaded boys who were currently whispering to each other in a secluded corner of the common room.

"Hello, Gred and Forge," Harry said greeting them quietly before sinking down into the seat in front of them. "I am in need of your expertise. Certain individuals need to… be taught a lesson. I was wondering if I could ask your assistance in this matter," he stated formally.

Fred spoke up. "Aah, little Harry." Harry growled in response. "Sorry. _Mr. Potter._ How could I forget."

"Tell us," George continued. "Is this concerning a certain four Slytherins who had the audacity to attack you?"

"Yep," Harry confirmed. "I have a few ideas on what to do, but I don't know how to. Or if it's even possible."

"Why would we help you disrupt our school?" Fred asked grinning.

George whacked him on the head. "Of course we will help him disrupt the school. How can you even ask such a thing?"

"I was only being sarcastic," Fred grumbled.

"Well, don't be. There will be no joking about pranks," George said solemnly but with a bright sparkle in his eyes. "This is a very serious business and our little adoptive brother requires our expert assistance. We must not even speculate about the option of saying no."

"Of course we will help him. I was only trying to remind our little adoptive brother that he can always count on us to aid him in the act of causing mischief and mayhem."

"Hmm. Good point." George turned to Harry. "Harry, you must never ask for our assistance again. Next time, just state what you need and we will provide to the best of our abilities."

"I agree," Fred said. "Now, what is it that you needed?"

Harry laughed. "Thanks. Well. Here's what I had in mind…" Harry spent the next few minutes explaining what he had in mind. The twins nodded from time to time and Fred was even taking a few notes. All the while they looked incredibly serious. "Now, I know how to do the first two, but I don't know how to do the others. Can it be done?" Harry asked anxiously when he had finished.

Fred looked over his notes. "The third one will be no problem. I know what potion you want to use. We've actually made it ourselves once."

George winced. "Yeah, That didn't work out too well, though. We were planning on using it on Snape, but he caught us just as we were spiking his drink."

"That's when we started suspecting that Snape was reading our minds."

"And, shortly afterwards we learned Occlumency."

"He never caught us again, did he dear brother?"

"Can't say he did, but he did come awfully close that one time when …"

"Er… Guys. Back on topic please?" Harry asked effectively stopping the reminiscing between the brothers.

"Sorry," the twins chanted together.

"Right… the pranks," Fred continued. "We'll get you the recipe for that potion. We have no idea how to do the last one, though. We will have to research that. Or find out a suitable alternative for it. We'll let you know."

"We only have one request to make," George added. "We want help in the distribution. They attacked our little brother and our adoptive little brother. They deserve all that's coming to them."

Harry smiled and shook the hands the twins held out. "Deal."

After that, Harry stood up and went to bed. Exhausted by the long day he quickly fell asleep.

_"Hi, Harry!" Ginny greeted cheerfully when Harry joined her in the dream._

_"Hey, Gin," Harry replied and gave her a long hug. "The plans for the pranks are working out great, aren't they?"_

_He looked around and took a deep breath enjoying the scene. Ginny had recreated their secret place behind the Burrow this night. He smiled when he saw the little 'upgrades' she had added in this dream world. Whereas in reality the ground was hard and covered in dirt, here it was soft and covered in thick, fresh, green grass. Instead of the hard wooden boxes they normally sat on, she had created a soft two person sofa. Harry smiled at his friend in appreciation and together they sat down._

_"Yeah, they are," Ginny agreed. "Too bad I still can't see the results of the pranks that I help plan."_

_"I know. But we'll do some better ones next year," Harry said._

_"We'd better," Ginny grumbled. "I wouldn't want to have missed all the fun."_

_Harry shrugged and they sat in silence for a while before Harry spoke up. "It's too bad we can't include Neville in the pranks. He has as much right for a little bit of revenge as me."_

_"I know, Harry. But we talked about this before. His mind isn't protected and he will surely get detention if Snape reads his mind. And you can't teach him now or Snape will know for sure you know Occlumency."_

_"Yeah, you're right. But still. It makes me sick knowing Snape is rummaging through my friend's brain."_

_"Me too. Teach him the basics just before the summer vacation. He can help us with the pranks next year if he practices over the summer."_

_Harry nodded seriously. "Great idea…" Then he smiled. "Enough seriousness. Want to go swimming?"_

* * *

Harry waited a week to start with the first part of his pranks; his detentions had left him with very little spare time. The next week, however, he had loads of it; Quidditch hadn't restarted again and lessons were still starting up. Harry made judicial use of this extra time by preparing everything. He also found that Ginny's Christmas gift came in really handy, as two of the recipes that he needed were in it, saving him many hours of having to research them in the library, just leaving the few hours of prep time for those potions. And, while he was working on those two, Fred and George had found how to do the other two and they had even gone as far as to make the potions for him.

On the next Monday, Harry and the twins managed to spike the four Slytherin's food.

It went of without a hitch…

Ginny's suggestion was to make the four Slytherins undesirable to spend time with, even in their own house. She had proposed to feed them all a powerful laxative. While that would have certainly made the four very smelly company, it would also mean they had to spend most of the day on the toilet and they just might be excused from the lessons. Instead, Harry had prepared a different surprise for each of them.

He had given them all an unattractive physical ailment. Crabbe was giving a potion that made him excessively sweat, Goyle got one that made his breath smell terribly, Pansy had the unladylike urge to burp all the time and Malfoy developed a bad case of gas. Once the symptoms began appearing, it took just a mere five minutes before the Slytherins around them scooted away, leaving at least five foot on each side of them. This, however, was not to be a one shot prank, as Harry had enough potion to ensure that they retained their ailments for another three days.

All in all, the effect was better than Harry and Ginny could have hoped for. By the end of the week nobody dared to sit close to any of the four anymore, just in case they suddenly developed their problems again. They were shunned and ignored by everyone in the castle. If they sat down at a table somewhere others stood up to sit somewhere else. And as an unanticipated bonus, the four Slytherins managed to annoy each other as well; they couldn't handle each other's irritating traits and so they ended up spending most of their time alone.

In all, they were very undesirable.

* * *

Now that the prank was over and his detentions were all done, Harry could go back to concentrating fully on his studies.

Harry was still something of a prodigy in Transfiguration and professor McGonagall kept finding new challenges for him. After the spells to change the base material of an item, she had taught him spells that affected the size of an object: the Shrinking and Expanding charms. And, now that he had mastered those as well, McGonagall was mostly teaching him all of the shortcuts that she had mentioned during that first lesson all of the way back in September. Most of these shortcuts allowed him to accomplish the various transfigurations with less mental focus than the standard approach and as expected Harry quickly mastered them. The majority of these spells were not taught at Hogwarts, which had been one of the reasons why McGonagall had chosen them, as she did not want to start him on second year material quite yet - turning animals into objects and back.

As for Defence Against the Dark Arts, Quirrell was still his unpleasant self with his usual boring as hell lessons. Having decided that Quirrell was the most likely culprit for the attempt on the Philosopher's Stone, Harry spent most of his time in class keeping a close eye on him and as such noticed that he looked a bit sickly. Quirrell was very pale and looked like he had lost a lot of pounds in a short time, but other than that nothing seemed remotely suspicious anymore. Harry had been so sure that Quirrel had been the one who had attempted to steal the stone, but even McGonagall didn't seem to be following Quirrell all the time like she did before the holidays; seemed like she hadn't found anything suspicious about the nervous professor and decided to stop wasting her time following the guy around.

When he mentioned this to his friends, it only increased their suspicion that Snape was really the one trying to steal it, especially Ron's. The fact that he was a 'greasy git' was enough of proof in Ron's mind to convict the unpleasant Potions professor. Speaking of which, the latter had become even more unpleasant lately. Harry suspected that Snape suspected that a prank had befallen his four favourite first years, since he had been trying to break into his mind ever their sudden drop in popularity amongst the inhabitants of the castle. Fact was that even he now seemed to avoid the unfortunate Slytherins. He still doted on them and let them get away with everything they did, but he now kept a safe distance in doing so.

As for Quidditch, the practices started up again during the last week of January. It was still bitter cold outside and the pitch was frozen solid, but that didn't defer Oliver Wood from getting them up at the crack of dawn that Saturday to get them ready for the game against Hufflepuff at the end of February.

"Wake up, Fred!" the burly fifth year captain yelled at his team-mate when he started dozing on his broom. "This is no time to sleep. The match against Hufflepuff is less than a month away and we _need_ to win. We are at the top of the rankings now and we will even overtake Slytherin in the House Cup if we win, which hasn't happened in years."

"Relax, Ollie," Fred soothed. "We have the best team I've seen since I started Hogwarts. There's no way we're going to lose against the 'Puffs."

Wood's scowl got deeper at that comment and he growled back, "No, I won't relax. And you shouldn't too. Our victory is definitely not a sure thing, especially not with Snape refereeing."

The entire team gulped audibly and George even slipped of his broom to the ground causing him to yelp loudly as he bruised his backside. Ginny who had been listening in choked on her drink when she heard that.

"Er… Did I hear you right?" Fred asked while his brother was recovering. "Snape's refereeing?"

"Yes, you heard me right," he snapped back. "Why Snape suddenly has the urge to be a referee, I don't know. But I do know his ideas of 'fair play' are not going to be in Gryffindor's advantage. So I want everyone to be on top of their game come game-day. Is that understood," he bellowed, now addressing everyone in his team.

"Yes, sir!" Fred said cheekily with a sloppy salute.

The glare that the redhead got his way could have melted the Quidditch pitch if it had been directed that way and in response Fred paled and mumbled a quick apology along with a promise that he would do anything in his power to ensure their victory.

The rest of the team repeated that promise quickly and soon they were back in the air diligently practicing the many moves and strategies Wood had devised.

* * *

"And they're off!" the magically enhanced voice of Lee Jordan announced on the long awaited and in some cases dreaded day of the Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. Harry, especially, had been a bundle of nerves that morning, hardly able to swallow his breakfast. The taunts coming from the Slytherin table didn't help one bit. This occasion was apparently special enough to break Malfoy and his cronies out of their seclusion from the rest of the school. They wasted no time to rally the others of their house in a small competition to come up with the most original insults, which in Harry's eyes they lost by a wide margin.

Harry's friends too were worried about today as they remembered what had happened during the last match, especially Ron. Ron was still convinced that Snape was the one who had tried to kill Harry and was sure that Snape was going to try again today. He had almost pleaded with Harry not to play today. However, Harry wasn't too concerned about Snape; McGonagall had assured him that the Potions professor had in fact saved his life that day and that was enough for him.

Harry had no idea why Snape did volunteer to referee this match, but the fact that he could sabotage the Gryffindor's play had probably played a major part in his decision.

Unfortunately, their expectations about Snape were fulfilled; he was _very_ biased. Not one minute into the game and Hufflepuff was awarded a penalty because George hit a Bludger towards the opposing team, which of course is part of basic game play. Following that penalty, the Gryffindor team played furiously and their three female chasers played their hearts out. However, the opposing team was good too and the many unfair penalties were weighing on the Gryffindors. Consequently, the Hufflepuffs were slowly but surely racking up a significant lead in points and an hour in the game it looked hopeless with the 'Puffs leading three hundred and ten to one hundred and forty.

During this time, Harry was franticly searching for the Snitch so as to end the match as quickly as possible, but it had yet to make an appearance. He couldn't believe they were about to lose, all because Snape was so unbelievably biased. Why did they let him be the referee anyway? His bias was a well-known fact to everyone in the castle. If it had been Madam Hooch as usual, they would probably be in the lead by now. Seeing a glint of gold, Harry abandoned his angry musings and shot off like an arrow from a bow, tearing after the elusive Snitch. A spectacular dive later and the little winged ball was fluttering in his hand trying to escape.

With the game finally over, the Gryffindors groaned loudly while the Hufflepuffs gave their team some lack lustre applause .They might have won, but the way in which they did so was really not to their liking, especially for the House that valued honesty and fair-play so much. The Slytherins were the only ones who seemed moderately happy with the results of the game, because it left them in the lead for the House Cup.

It was a very subdued Harry who returned to the Gryffindor tower and only Ginny's soothing presence kept him from getting depressed.


End file.
